A Change
by Ramore361
Summary: Tony Stark has a 16 year old daughter that he's raised her entire life. As she grows older and becomes more and more like him, she takes on his traits and abilities. After Tony is kidnapped at a weapons demonstration and returns home three months later to create the Iron Man suit, he may need to call on his daughter for help.
1. Chapter 1

_Sixteen years ago, Tony Stark was in a somewhat stable relationship. His long-time girlfriend, Katherine, was pregnant with their first child. It wasn't exactly the best time for a child in their lives, but they embraced it. When their daughter was born, Katherine spent three years with her young family before she left Tony, escaping their life together for good, and abandoning her daughter. However she wasn't totally abandoned, Tony vowed to raise his daughter the best he could as a single parent, and it wasn't easy. The coming of the teenage years was a particular example of the horrors they had fought together, but nonetheless Tony managed to raise a beautiful, incredibly intelligent daughter. Rebecca Stark._

* * *

The music was blaring on full volume when Pepper walked downstairs to Tony's workshop. Rebecca's legs were only just visible beneath the rusty old car she was working on, calling instructions to the robotic device Tony had created.

"No!" she sighed loudly, annoyance in her tone. "I said number 4, not this." she handed the metal tool back to it, waiting for the right one in return. "Ah ha, that's it." she praised when she was presented with her tool of request. "Now was that so hard?" she teased as she removed something front the engine and tossed it aside.

Pepper put the security code into a device before the door accepted and opened. She held a coffee in her hand from Starbucks and a small package wrapped in brown paper in the other, after turning the volume down to a reasonable level.

"Rebecca," Pepper called as she walked closer to the girl. "A package came for you, and a coffee from me." Rebecca continued rattling around with the engine of the car, ignoring Pepper's information. "It's extra strong cappuccino, double shot, just as you like."

"Soy milk?" the girl responded after a short pause in her work. "No sugar? Starbucks?"

"Yes, Miss. Stark." Pepper waited for her to roll out from under the car. Usually, she'd call her by her first name, but when Rebecca spoke like her father as she sometimes did, Pepper addressed her as a Stark. Rebecca soon took a break from her work, telling Jarvis to turn the music down for a while, realizing it didn't seem as loud under the car. Pepper handed her the coffee before setting the package on the working desk next to her. "You received _another_ letter from Harvard."

Rebecca rolled her eyes whilst taking a sip of her coffee. "Nope." she waved off the subject. Her hair was pulled into a messy bun and grease and all sorts of mess covered her mechanic jumpsuit. After a few mouthfuls of coffee, she sat the cup down and picked up the package. "Ah, it's the part I ordered last week." she smiled. "Remind me to do something about the slow delivery."

Pepper nodded before looking around the car she was working on. "So, this is what you're doing lately." she observed. "Any thoughts on what-"

"Pepper," Rebecca stopped her. "I don't need to be lectured about what to do with my future. I have plenty of time to think about it. Can we just…_not_ have this discussion? Again." she held her hands up, protesting.

Pepper folded her arms in front of her. "You have more potential than any other sixteen year old out there. You have a level of intelligence that others can only dream of and a wonderfully gifted mind." Pepper reminded her, looking proud. "I just want you to make something of it."

"I am." she replied before lowering herself back onto the board and rolling beneath the car.

Rebecca often helped Tony in designing weapons, despite his occasional objections, she understood everything just as he did. As Pepper said, she had a wonderful mind. One of the many traits she had inherited from her father. She would suggest certain altercations in order to make them appealing to the armed forces. Pepper put her hands on her hips in a scolding position, although there was very little to do to convince Rebecca of her talent so she wouldn't waste it. She had grown so attached to Rebecca that she felt as though it was her own child, and Rebecca couldn't deny the motherly bond they shared either, but she was just as stubborn as Tony was and their was no way of changing either of their minds once they'd been set.

* * *

Tony walked through the living room of his California home, followed by Happy, his bodyguard. They were laughing at something, but as usual, Pepper didn't bother to ask, knowing it would be something silly.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow then to take you to the airport." Happy clapped his hands together once, making his way to the door. "Nice to see you Pepper."

"Bye Happy," Pepper waved him off, before turning to face Tony with a confused look. "Tomorrow? Airport?" she asked. "You have a press conference scheduled tomorrow, that doesn't require flight travel."

Tony braced himself for Pepper's wrath as he informed her of the changes events. "Well, see, military demonstration has been moved to tomorrow." he smiled like a child trying to avoid any anger in Pepper.

"And when did this happen?" Pepper asked, staying calm. "Because this press conference has been scheduled for a week and the demonstration isn't supposed to be for another three days."

"Well, I felt like doing the demonstration tomorrow and they made it work." he shrugged. "Obi will deal with the press, don't stress about it."

"Don't stress about it?" Pepper looked at him with a look of disbelief. "It's hard not to, Tony, when you've arranged to go to to another country tomorrow and ditch a very important press conference which benefits your company."

"Like I said," Tony held Pepper's shoulders. "Obi will take care of it. Everything will go smoothly, nothing to worry about." Tony patted her shoulders before she let out an exasperated sigh. "Where's Bec?"

Pepper whisked the hair out of her face, taking a deep breath. "Your daughter is downstairs in the workshop, pulling a car apart." she told him. "A letter came from Harvard, another one, requesting her. She won't go."

Tony smirked. "She's too good for them." he walked over to the bar and poured himself a drink.

"Tony," Pepper sighed once again. "She could make so much of her life, if she just had some interest."

"I'm not going to pressure her into going to Harvard," Tony placed the glass lid on top of the bourbon bottle. "She's already graduated university, and she's sixteen. Top of all her classes, distinctions in all physics, science, mechanics and engineering classes. Graduated engineering college, degrees already. What more can you want?" he boasted his daughter's remarkable intelligence.

"It's not what_ I_ want, you know I would never pressure her into anything wrong for her, I just want her consider it. So many children start their lives and find their career path at college-"

"Which she's already graduated." Tony cut in loudly.

"She graduated, yes, but she never _attended _the actual university. Never got to have the same experience as other people have. She's excelled beyond everyone her age, but she's losing the most definitive moments of her youth. Harvard is an opportunity for her. I just want her to consider it, that's all. If she hates the idea so much, I'll leave the topic alone." Pepper vowed.

Tony looked at the letter Pepper handed him, addressed to Miss. Rebecca Stark. "I'll talk to her about it." he nodded, turning in direction of the stairs.

* * *

The workshop was a mess, which was no surprise considering Rebecca was just as dedicated to her work as her father was, and shared the same frustration with certain robotic assistance.

"I _swear_ I'll pull you apart and make my own damn tools out of you if you can't manage a _simple_ familiarization with them, you've been looking at them all day." Rebecca complained as she was constantly presented with the wrong tools and equipment. "You know what? Just pass me that box on the table, _carefully_." Rebecca waited until she was handed the package that she'd already opened, taking out the part she had been looking for.

Tony opened the door and walked into the room, cringing slightly at how loud the music was, even for him. There were tools lined up in a row, ascending in size, and the computer screen on the desk was showing a website for late model car parts, which was just what she needed.

"Hey, take a break huh?" Tony asked when he bent down low enough to see her. He walked over to the computer and browsed through the items she'd been looking at, nodding at the choices. "Should be done by the end of next week." Tony referred to the complete remodeling of the car. "Maybe."

Rebecca scoffed. "By the end of _this_ week." she corrected, feeling confident in the work she'd done already. She picked up a piece I material and started wiping the oil and grease off her hands and some that was on her face before she noticed the letter in Tony's hand. "Please don't tell me you want me to go to that place."

Tony sighed, taking a seat on the stack of boxes to her side. "I don't want you to do anything you don't want to." he said simply. "But, in saying that, I do want you to consider your options."

"_Dad_," she groaned. "I thought we talked about this." she stood up, walking over to the computer and selecting a few more items to purchase. "Do you know how many sixteen year olds get requested to go to Harvard?" she looked over to him skeptically. "_None_."

"And how many already graduate university classes at sixteen?" Tony pointed out. "None, and _you_ did it."

"Yeah," she looked back at the screen. "I did. So why do I have to go to another one?"

Tony rolled his eyes. "You _don't_ have to. I'm just saying, consider it. I was the same at your age, thought I had it all worked out, well, granted I_ did_, but I could've done so many other things. That's all I'm gonna say about it, okay? Done." he stood up as well, walking over to his area of the workshop.

"Did Pepper put you up to this?" she waited a short moment before following him.

"Maybe, well yeah." he shrugged. "She worries, you know Pepper."

Rebecca leaned her elbows on his desk, her chin rested in her palms as she nodded thoughtfully. "I know she does." she spoke quietly before taking another pause. "I'll think about it, I will."

"Oh, Bec," Tony stopped her as she began walking past him to the door. "I've got that demonstration tomorrow, Pepper and Obadiah are doing a press conference so you'll most likely be here alone." he looked at her sympathetically.

"Aw, Dad we were gonna do the paint samples of the car tomorrow." Rebecca whined. "You said you weren't going until Saturday." she looked confused by the change of plans.

"Im sorry honey, we can do the paintwork and stuff when I get back instead." he encouraged the idea. Although she didn't know, Tony had arranged to go on the demonstration tomorrow she they could spend the weekend together on the car. It was their bonding time, and with Rebecca just finishing an engineering course, she had only just started coming down to the workshop more often. She didn't like him canceling his weapons commitments for her, so he left it be.

* * *

"Rebecca," Pepper called out. "Pizza's here." She thanked the delivery boy before carrying the pizza into the living room and setting it on the bench.

"Thanks," Rebecca made her way over to the bench, freshly showered and feeling tired, but she began eating the pizza with an obvious hunger. "Where's Dad?" she asked with a mouthful.

"He's sorting out some stuff with Rhodey about tomorrow." Pepper told her, closing her folder and resting back in the chair. "You're welcome to come to the press conference tomorrow, you're just as important as the rest of the members." Pepper smiled.

Rebecca shrugged. "I don't like those press things, but I'll let you know." she continued munching of a slice. "Pizza?" she offered.

"No thanks." Pepper politely held her hand up in refusal. "Not hungry."

"Pizza?" Rebecca heard a voice coming into the room. "Yes _please_." It was Rhodey.

"Uh uh, not _you_," Rebecca picked up the box and moved it away from his reach, teasing him. "You always eat my food."

"Well you can't eat a _whole_ pizza yourself." Rhodey pointed out, trying to get to the box.

"Oh, think again my friend." Tony warned as hit the side of his arm while walking past to take a seat on the couch. When he looked back over to the bench, Rebecca was relenting and had offered him a piece of pizza, but the smallest slice, making sure he took that and not the others. At this, Tony let out a slight chuckle.

"Okay, I've got some things for you to look over for the conference tomorrow." Pepper handed him a small folder.

"But I'm not even going to it, Obi is." Tony looked up like a whiny child. "I don't want to read all this _now_."

"I'm gonna head off guys, don't be late tomorrow Tony." Rhodey warned. "See ya Pepper, Beccy." he walked toward the door, laughing at Rebecca's face when he referred to her as Beccy. It was his name for her when she was little and he just hadn't gotten out of the habit.

"Bye Rhodey," Pepper farewelled him before turning back to Tony. "Yes, you're not going to be there, which is why you have to read these now so Obi can either accept them or not."

"Accept what?"

Pepper rolled her eyes. "Just read."

* * *

Later on in the night, Rebecca walked downstairs for a drink when she noticed Tony still in the living room reading the forms Pepper had given him.

"Dad?" she yawned. "Why are you still up?" she stumbled over to the couch next to him.

"Just fixing some stuff up," he looked up from the papers. "Why aren't you in bed?"

"Can't sleep," she yawned again. "I don't feel good." she leaned her head against Tony's shoulder and he wrapped his arm around her. "Do you have to go tomorrow?"

Tony slumped his shoulders. "I know, I wish I didn't have to, but I've been putting it off for too long."

"Can't someone else do it for once? You _always_ have to do it." she asked. She was looking forward to spending more time with her father now she had no schooling commitments. "Can Obi do it?"

Tony laughed quietly. "Obadiah wouldn't know how they worked. They need the man who made them. Trust me, if someone else could do it, I'd have them on it, but that's not how it works."

"I know," she spoke quietly.

Tony and Rebecca stood up and he still kept his arm around her shoulder. "You should go back to bed. Try and sleep." They walked upstairs and he stopped at her door and pulled her in for a hug, knowing he'd be gone before she woke up. "I love you kiddo." he held her tight.

"Love you too dad." she mumbled, tired, but enough energy to hug him back with the same enthusiasm.

"See you when I get back."


	2. Chapter 2

The sheets were cool on Rebecca's legs as she stretched under them the next morning. It was dark inside her room, the shutters blocking off any sign of light from the windows. She assumed it was early, but gathering the time it took for her to successfully fall asleep the night before, it could have been late in the day. Just as he began dozing off once again, she was interrupted by Jarvis.

"Good morning Miss. Stark," the window shutters disappeared and the natural light made her pull the sheets over her face. Jarvis continued informing her on the weather for the day and her plans.

"Plans?" she spoke. "I plan on sleeping." Lifting the sheets, she buried herself beneath them and tried to ignore the brightly lot room.

"Miss. Potts requested your morning wake up at this particular hour as you're attending a press conference in the city today." Jarvis informed once again.

Rebecca groaned, still covering her face in the blankets before she finally forced herself out of the bed. It was clear that she wasn't getting any more sleep other than the few hours she had, so she decided to take a nice warm shower. This press conference was sure to be a bore, and it was guaranteed to drag on about nothing important. When she was younger, Tony tried to avoid taking her to these types of things, the crowds used to frighten her, so whenever she would go, Tony would let her sit on his lap or stand next to him as he held his part of the conference. Now she was older, she took a seat in the crowd with the others most of the time if she wasn't sitting by herself, avoiding reporters of any type as they always asked her about her fathers increasing involvement with the armed forces.

"I didn't think you'd actually get out of bed." Pepper commented as Rebecca walked into the kitchen. She was dressed very neatly, as always for this type of event, and her hair was out naturally smooth and straight, looking very mature.

"Yes, well it wasn't without protest." Rebecca took the jug of orange juice out of the fridge, pouring herself a small glass. "Do you think Happy could stop at Starbucks on the way?" she asked, an appetite for a chocolate croissant.

Pepper smiled. "You know he will, he can't stand saying no to you." She was right. Happy was the only other relatively close friend that Tony had other than Rhodey, Pepper and Obadiah, and he still saw her as the same little girl he knew from years ago. He'd always take her for ice-cream and all sorts of sweets when Tony was very busy, he was one of the only people he trusted enough to take care of his daughter when such situations arose.

* * *

Rebecca sat in the back of the limo with Pepper, eating the chocolate croissant she'd just bought.

"How long do you think this press thing will go for?" she asked Pepper who was preparing the file for Obadiah. "I just don't wanna be sitting with the board members for long."

Pepper folded the file shut, setting it down next to her on the seat before glancing at her watch. "Should be finished within the hour, but be prepared for a bit longer." Rebecca groaned at the answer, resting her her head back on the seat.

"You know those reporters always sit around me asking questions non-stop, I can't stand it for more than an hour." she explained. "If that."

"I know they're a bit much, but it's good to come to these things since you seem to have an interest in the weapons manufacturing." Pepper pointed out. "And you seem to enjoy it."

"It's not that I _enjoy_ making weapons, I like enhancing them. Making them better. I mean, I've been around it my whole life. I do _not_ enjoy the press stuff, I don't enjoy everyone knowing my life story and acting like I'm so important." she told Pepper honestly.

Pepper frowned. "Your dad didn't want this for you, you know that, right? He didn't want you brought up in the public. That's how he was raised, and he tried so hard to protect you from it. But your family name is known all across America, there's no escaping that."

"I know," Rebecca nodded. "It's not his fault, it's no ones fault, it's just the way it is."

* * *

The press conference was just as dull as it was expected to be. Rebecca sat in the back row with Pepper, ignoring the flashes from cameras pointed her way. She hadn't been to a press conference in months, so everyone was eager to speak with her. Obadiah spoke to the listening crowd for about an hour, taking questions and comments from them regarding Stark Enterprises' future with the military.

"Stark Enterprises is continuing to support the military with advancing technologies in weapons." Obadiah explained with a relaxed tone. "In fact, Tony Stark is conducting a weapons demonstration at the moment, which is why he couldn't make it here today and he sends his regards."

Rebecca and Pepper both smiled at the last comment, knowing very well Tony could care less about this conference. It continued to go on for a while longer, but when it finally ended, Rebecca followed Pepper over to Obadiah in a separate room from the press.

"Look who it is!" Obadiah beamed when he saw Rebecca close behind Pepper, giving her a small but welcoming hug. "What made you want to come to this? Thought you hated these things."

"I do." she looked around the room. "But I figured I better show up to one every now and then, just to show I actually have an interest in the company."

"That's a girl." he encouraged. "Pepper, are these files all up to date?" he asked quickly when she handed them to him.

"Yes. Up to date as of three hours ago, all in order and ready for review." she informed him in a professional tone.

"Perfect." he smiled. "You're wonderful. So, Rebecca, have you thought any more about your involvement in the company? Not long now 'till you're eighteen."

Rebeca shrugged. "Not really. I mean, I have a considerable amount of interest in the weapons manufacturing, but I'm still weighing up my options…_outside_ of the company." she looked over to Pepper, who was smiling happily, proud that she was at least considering some alternatives.

"Well, whatever you decide, there's always room for you here, it's your family name after all."

* * *

Rebecca spend the afternoon loading paint samples from all sorts of cars into her programmer in order to get the best color in her car. From hotrods to completely out there cars, she meshed different colors together and developed her own shades, excited to get the job done. It was early in the evening, so she wandered around the house trying to find something to do since her car work was put on hold, waiting for a particular part she'd ordered. When she made her way into the living room, Pepper was sitting on the couch watching the television intently as the press conference was being shown. She leaned against the doorway watching quietly.

_"It was an unexpected appearance today at a Stark Enterprises press conference with Rebecca Stark, daughter of weapons designer Tony Stark, sitting amongst the members as her family company was being discussed. No comments were made by the sixteen year old genius when she was questioned about her potential involvement in the future years of Stark Enterprises, fuelling speculation that the youngest Stark is about to take a step in a _different_ direction to her father, turning her back on the company her legendary grandfather worked his whole life to establish and continue on a path of success."_

Rebecca folded her arms, watching as the news reporter continued her cover of the press conference, mentioning the weapons demonstration that was taking place. Pepper turned her head and noticed Rebecca standing in in the doorway.

"Oh," she fumbled with the remote, adjusting the volume before taking note of Rebecca's solemn expression. "Is everything okay?"

Rebecca nodded, changing her attitude. "Yeah, fine." she moved to take a seat on the adjoining couch. "Have you heard from dad, or Rhodey?"

Pepper looked at her watch. "I'd say they would be doing the demonstration now. Obi will call when they're done, he'll be contacting your father in a few hours to make sure everything went alright." Rebecca nodded, and Pepper could see she just wanted her dad. "Hey, how about some Chinese food? I could order some in, watch a movie or something?" she suggested comfortingly.

Rebecca grinned at Pepper's efforts. "Sure, sounds good."

* * *

After being informed by Obi that the demonstration had went well, Rebecca had returned to the workshop to clean up most of her tools and make way for the full car body scan that she would run later on in the night in preparation of the paint measurements. There were useless parts all over the place, parts she'd ignored after ripping them from the car itself.

''I guess you didn't hear me ask you to organise this stuff huh.'' she shook her head, referring to the robotic assistance.

She scraped them all up off the floor and placed them in the bin, ready to dispose of when she caught the attention of the folder on Tony's desk. Walking closer, it became more familiar. It had 'Stark' written boldly on the front, proudly displayed. As she took a seat, she ran her hands across the leathery texture of the book. She remembered the folder, it was home to all her certificates, degrees and accomplishments. When she opened the front page, she had seen that Tony placed her three letters from Harvard at the start, adding them to the collection. The way he documented all of her achievements, no matter how small or extravagant, was admiring. He was so proud of her, and he never doubted anything she set out to do. School certificates, exam distinctions, early scholarship awards, early university acknowledgments all littered the pages of the folder. Rebecca sat there for almost an hour just going through all her old school awards, feeling nostalgic even though she was only sixteen, her childhood seemed so long ago although she was still a child really.

"Rebecca," Pepper's voice came through the intercom. "are you down there?"

Rebecca pushed the button to allow her to respond. "Yeah, just cleaning up."

"Okay, I'll see you in the morning. I promise you can sleep in as long as you want."

Rebecca smiled. "Goodnight Pepper."


	3. Chapter 3

Rebecca yawned as she pulled herself up into a sitting position on her bed. The room was pitch black until she maneuvered the switch beside her bed to open the shades slightly, letting in just enough light. When she sat quietly for a few more moments, she could make out muffled voices coming from somewhere in the house. One was Pepper's, her tone was obvious, but there were two others that was wasn't quite sure of. There was another switch next to her bed to turn on the intercom in the living room, and she listened in on the conversation.

"Just be easy on her okay," Pepper warned. "I don't know how she's gonna take this."

"I know you're worried about her Pepper, we all are," That was Rhodey's voice, she was sure of it. "But there's no easy way to tell her."

Rebecca began panicking. What was it that got them all so worried? Why would it affect her so much? Why were they worrying about her? Something's wrong. Her heart began pounding in her chest, worrying what it could be. She jumped out of bed and changed from her pajamas to some casual wear before throwing her hair into a bun, just in case there was anyone else she didn't know. As she neared the living room, she could see Pepper on the end of the couch with a distressed look, her face blotched from tears. Rhodey was still in his army gear and Obadiah was sitting on the far end of the room silently. When she made her presence known, they all turned to her with a horrible expression.

"What's happened?" Rebecca asked them with a serious voice, but no one could find words to speak. "Where's dad?" she looked back and forth between them all, but still no one spoke out of shock. "Will _someone_ answer me? What's going on?"

Pepper signaled for Rebecca to come take a seat next to her, and she did so without asking questions, hoping that someone would explain things to her when she sat down. Rhodey walked over and sat on the seat opposite her, and pulled it close. Rebecca's heart started beating faster in her chest, the anxiousness and worry in her body making her tremble.

"Beccy," he began, taking a brief pause to plan his words. "There's no way I can make this any easier, so I'm going tell you straight, because you deserve that." he looked over at Pepper and they exchanged a quick glance before he focused back on Rebecca. "Your dad…when he left the demonstration, the vehicle he was traveling in was attacked…" Rhodey took another pause. "and he wasn't found. He's missing, and there's a chance…there's a chance he's been taken by the attackers."

Rebecca felt her stomach twist in knots and her head spin at the news. This couldn't be happening. Tony always did these demonstrations, there's no way something like this could've happened. She didn't understand even though Rhodey had explained it to her perfectly. Well, she understood what he was saying, but she couldn't make sense of it, couldn't comprehend what she'd been told. Pepper's arms made their way around Rebecca's shoulders, trying to offer as much comfort as she could, although it was useless.

"Bec," Rhodey tapped at her leg. "I know this is hard for you, but do you understand what I've said?" he tried to get through to her, breaking through her daze. She nodded slowly, but her expression wasn't convincing. Then he turned his attention to Pepper. "She's in shock, she'll need some time before she can ask questions." Pepper nodded, pulling her closer.

They all sat quietly for a few minutes, no one speaking, each of them thinking to themselves. Rebecca looked at the worry in Rhodey's eyes, and she knew he was scared for his best friend. Pepper didn't speak, not trusting herself to keep it together, and wanting to stay strong for Rebecca. Obadiah still hadn't said a word, he was just staring at the floor, avoiding any eye contact with either of them. There were so many things she wanted to ask, but she couldn't even sort her thoughts out. All she could think of was her dad never coming home. Never being able to see him again, hug him, stay up late at night and help him with his work. He needed to come home, he just had to. There was no way she could adjust to being without him, he'd been there for her her whole life.

"What happens now?" she broke the silence, her voice quiet and fragile. Rhodey looked up at her, surprised she was able to speak through her shock. "How are you going to find him?"

Rhodey exchanged more glances with Pepper as if they were negotiating what to say to her. "Well…we've got teams there now working to find him and anyone else from the attack. We've been looking ever since it happened, but I had to come back to prepare an air force team to help. We leave in thirty minutes, and then it's just a searching mission from there in." Rhodey explained to her, making sure she absorbed everything he was saying.

"I want to come." she told him, making even Obadiah look up from his mesmerized trance. "I want to help." She spoke confidently, but they knew she was still in shock.

"Beccy…" Rhodey sat up. "I know you want to help, I_ know_." he made sure she understood. "But you are the most precious thing in your dad's life, and I'm _not_ putting you in that kind of danger, I'm sorry. I swore I'd always take care of you, and I can't let you come…I'm sorry."

"But…he's out there alone. He could be captured, he could be…he might be…" she stuttered, unable to finish her words, too scared of the possibility they could be true.

"Hey, hey," Rhodey kneeled down in front of her, pulling her into a comforting hug. "I'm going to find him. I'm not giving up, I won't come home without him, I _promise_ you." he vowed, making tears form in his own eyes as well as hers. "I'm so sorry this happened."

As Rhodey tried his best to comfort her, Pepper also rest her head against Rebecca's shoulder and rubbed her shoulder soothingly. With all the support he had, and the loving people by her side, Rebecca couldn't help feel guilty, because no matter how hard they tried to comfort her, all she wanted was her dad and nothing would comfort her until he has home.

* * *

For the rest of the morning Pepper was on the phone to all sorts of people, urging them not to make the news of Tony's disappearance public. Although only a few of the board knew as of yet, persistent reporters soon got a hold of the information. Rhodey had left not long after their conversation to head back to the air force and ready the team. Obadiah, still speechless, left for the company headquarters, trying to take his mind off the matter ad handle the fallout. Rebecca sat in the living room alone, she hadn't moved since she sat down and was still in a trance-like state, her thoughts still muddled. This sort of thing just didn't happen to anyone, these things happened in movies, not in reality.

"What!" she heard Pepper yell into the phone, her emotions on edge. "No! No, this can't happen. It's too soon!" Rebecca listened in closely, waiting for Pepper to speak again. "You are aware he has a daughter, aren't you? Do you even care about how this will impact her? The entire public talking about her father going missing, coming to house trying to get photos and talk with her when she's only just...barely coming to terms with it." she spoke angrily, trying to change whoever's mind. "Don't think I will let this go lightly, you'll be hearing from my-" Pepper gasped as they had hung up on her.

When Pepper walked into the lounge room, Rebecca had turned on the news and searched the channels until she found the one with breaking news about her father. She held her composure, preparing herself for their words.

"Rebecca," Pepper tried to grab the remote, but it was taken. "Don't watch this, they're going to exaggerate everything, just turn-"

"I want to watch it." Rebecca spoke quietly, but confidently. "Everyone else will be hearing the same thing, why shouldn't I?"

Pepper pushed the argument no further, taking a seat next to her on the couch and listening in to the breaking news report.

_"The famous weapons manufacturer of Stark Enterprises, Tony Stark, has gone missing while performing a weapons demonstration in Afghanistan. It's said that the army vehicle he was traveling in, which also contained military personnel, was attacked by an alleged terrorist group. Unfortunately, there were American solider casualties. Mr. Stark is feared to have been kidnapped by the terrorist group and there are currently operations in place for the search and rescue of Mr. Stark, however it doesn't seem hopeful as the area of the attack is very remote and in the middle of one of the largest deserts."_

Rebecca watched as the reporter calmly and composedly broke the news to the public, telling of how unhopeful a rescue of Tony was. Then, they continued mentioning the fact that his daughter is now parentless, being forced to make decisions that someone so young is not prepared for. It was insulting, it was hurtful, and it was all lies. She wasn't parentless. Tony was still out there, he just wasn't home. As for her mother, she really had no interest in pursuing that aspect of her life.

"You_ know_ they exaggerate these stories for attention," Pepper explained. "there_ is_ hope, don't listen to them. I have hope, Rhodey has hope, your _dad_ has hope, and…you have hope." the last part of her speech sounded like a question, and if it was, Rebecca wasn't going to answer.

Instead, she stood up from the position she had been in for the last few hours and began walking down to the workshop. Pepper didn't follow her or try an encourage her to talk to her about why was going on, instead she left her to deal with things on her own terms with the respect she deserved. When Rebecca made it to the door, she quickly put in her code and stepped inside, taking a moment to absorb the silence that filled the room. All of Tony's little inventions and tools filled his desk just the way he left it. The only thing that had been touched was the memory book of Rebecca that she'd looked through the night before. It only saddened her to look at the same book now, knowing that Tony would have done anything if the roles were reversed. He would have searched every inch of that desert and more just to find her and bring her home, and it frustrated Rebecca that she wasn't able to do that, so much to the point where she broke down. She threw anything she could reach into the wall before making her way over to her car and kicking it furiously. It wasn't the most mature response to what was going on, but she was a teenage girl, and she was acting out on her emotions. Slowly, pieces that she had only just replaced on the car fell to the floor with a loud metal clang on the ground. Finally, she lowered herself to the ground and let herself cry. After the strength and control she had used earlier to hold in her tears, she was now crying hysterically and freely. At one moment Pepper did walk down to the workshop, letting her own tears fall as she watched Rebecca, broken, before turning back and giving her some privacy.

When her crying died out to some miserable sobbing, she slowly began to remember all of the things her father had told her to do when she went to school.

_"What did daddy tell you about any strangers?" he knelt down in front of the little girl. She had a little ribbon in her ponytail, her backpack on proudly and her school uniform perfectly fitted. "Bec?" he asked again._

_The little girl looked up from her shiny new school shoes and met her father's worried gaze. "I won't talk to no strangers daddy." she assured him with a smile._

_Tony couldn't help grin at his daughter's innocent expression. He couldn't bare if anything ever happened to her, and now he was learning to let her go. It was only elementary school, but he would miss not spending all his hours of the day with her. He was so used to it just being the two of them._

_"Just in case," Tony unzipped her backpack and put a small cell phone into one of the small pockets. "That's if you ever need me, but don't use it unless its an emergency, okay?" Rebecca nodded in agreement before climbing into the backseat of the car and excitedly showing Happy her new backpack._

_"You're giving her a cell phone?" Pepper asked, a little shocked he would give his six year old daughter such a gift._

_"It only calls me, it does absolutely nothing else, I designed it myself." he explained calmly. "It's got an inbuilt tracking device, just in case anything ever happens." he added, a hint of concern in his eyes, dreading having to ever experience anything that would cause him to use it for serious reasons._

_"Dad! Come on! It's time to go!" Rebecca called from the car window and Pepper walked over to give a kiss on the cheek._

_"Have a good day." she laughed at the little girl's enthusiasm._

Rebecca stopped her her sniffles as she remembered that day clearly in her head. The phone, the inbuilt tracking device. Tony had fitted any phone he made with a tracking device, especially when she hit her teenage years. Tony's phone would have an inbuilt tracking device, she could pinpoint the location if he still had it on him, and he must have since Obadiah called him.

"Jarvis!" she shouted, jumping up to her feet and running over to the large projection computer. "Gonna need your help here."


	4. Chapter 4

''I'm sorry Miss. Stark, but you cannot access the location system without the required passwords.'' Jarvis informed her.

Rebecca groaned loudly. ''I don't think passwords are necessary right_ now_ Jarvis. You know I'll find a way into them if you don't let me, so there's really no point in this argument, is there?'' she pointed out angrily.

''I suppose not.'' Jarvis answered before granting her access.

Rebecca sighed with relief. ''Thank you. I need the most accurate location of Tony Stark's cell phone, last phone call made about ten hours ago.'' she typed away at the keyboard, getting closer and closer to the files she needed. ''Once you find them, I need grid reference and get Rhodey on the phone.''

It wasn't long before she accessed the file she needed, taking the numbers she needed on Tony's cell and calling them out to Jarvis. In a matter of minutes, he had tracked the location of Tony's cell as if it were that easy. Pepper rushed down to the workshop when she was requested by Rebecca and watched on as she explained the tracking device. Pepper couldn't believe that no one had considered it, but then again, not everyone had tracking devices in their cell like Tony did.

''Bec, what's up? Is everything okay?'' Rhodey's worried voice came into the room by speaker. He was still in the aircraft that they were taking over, and it was hard to hear him,

''Rhodey, dad's got a tracking device in his phone, I've got the location!'' she told him hurriedly, calling out the location that Jarvis had given her. Rhodey was surprised as well that he didn't think of it, but when something like this happens, there's not much thinking going on as opposed to just acting out.

Rhodey promised to keep Rebecca in the loop, calling her whenever they had finished a search and telling her where their next one was. The first thing they were going to do when they got to the area was search the location of Tony's tracking device, that had now become top priority. Rebecca still didn't feel she had done enough to help her father, she just wished she could be out there with them instead of sitting at home crying. She sat there for over two hours after calling Rhodey until Pepper finally convinced her to come upstairs and eat something.

''I'm not hungry.'' she shook her head as she played with the food on her plate. Pepper had cooked a meal for the instead of ordering in, just to take her mind off things and keep her busy. Obadiah had relieved Pepper of her job until any sign of Tony so that she could be with Rebecca. If Pepper wasn't there, Rebecca wouldn't know what to do. She was the closest thing to a mother that she had ever had.

Pepper sighed, but nodded in agreement. ''I know, me neither, but you need to eat or you'll make yourself sick.'' Pepper was worried that Rebecca's anxiety would build up so much she would have a panic attack or a break down, so she did her best to make sure she would eat.

Rebecca held a fork full of food to her mouth and paused before she ate it. It made her feel better, but only because her stomach was no longer doing back flips and making her feel as if she had to throw up. ''Do you think they'll find him, Pepper?'' she asked quietly, bracing herself for whatever answer.

Pepper put her fork down and quickly thought to herself about how to respond. She didn't want to get her hopes up for Tony to come home any time soon, but she also didn't want her to lose faith. ''I think...that your father is going to do _everything_ he can to make sure he comes home, and he doesn't give up easily. He's a stubborn man, you know that, and Rhodey will find him. Neither of them are going to give up.'' Pepper reached over and held Rebecca's hand. ''So yes, I do think they'll find him, and I think your dad will find them, too.''

* * *

Rebecca had eventually gone for a quick shower and changed into her pyjamas after being assured by Pepper that she could let her know if Rhodey called. So far, there had been no news from him. It was about 10pm and Rebecca sat in front of the television watching all of the reports about her father on numerous channels, none of them expressing any hope for return.

_''Military strike teams and airforce teams have been searching the area for many hours now, and still no sign of the billionaire weapons designer. The search is said to go on for however long it takes, which could be days, weeks and months. Either way, there still doesn't seem to be any considerable evidence to help narrow down the location of Mr. Stark.''_

Pepper sat quietly on the opposite couch, watching Rebecca respond to the news with a blank expression. She didn't know why Rebecca did this to herself, watching all these reports which were all exaggerated and mostly false claims. Nevertheless, Pepper didn't interrupt, until the phone rang in the kitchen and Rebecca jumped up and ran as quick as she could.

''Rhodey?'' she answered the phone eagerly.

''Yeah, it's me Bec,'' he spoke miserably. ''Listen, we followed the navigation and we found the cell...but...there's no sign of your dad.'' his voice was quiet, saddened. Rebecca didn't speak for a while, taking the time to accept the disappointment, the lost hope. She was so confident they could have found him, but she had to push out any of the negative thoughts if she was going to make it through this ordeal. ''I'm not giving up, okay? Remember that. I am _not_ giving up. I _will_ find him, and bring him home.'' he promised her, although she already knew he wouldn't give on on her dad.

''I know you won't give up,'' she sniffled, trying her best to hide her disappointment. ''just be safe.''

Pepper didn't hear anything that Rhodey had said, but it was obvious. Rebecca set the phone down carefully, staring at the kitchen bench with a sad expression. A few moments later, she turned her back to Pepper and her tears broke through, rolling down her cheeks. Pepper hurried over and wrapped her arms around her tightly, holding her close. ''I'm _so_ sorry honey,'' she tried her best to soothe her. ''Listen, listen, they're going to find him, just like I said, it's just going to take some time, that's all.'' she took Rebecca's face in her hands, brushing her hair away and wiping the tears clear from under her eyes. ''I'm not going anywhere, I'm here for you okay? Don't you ever think you're alone in this. Talk to me, don't hold it in, alright?'' Pepper was on the verge of crying when Rebecca pulled her back into her embrace, holding her tight. The gesture took Pepper's memory back to when Rebecca was a small child when Pepper had only been around for a short while.

_The little girl ran into the kitchen, expecting to see her father, but instead greeted by his new assistant_.

_''Sweetie, what's wrong?'' Pepper knelt down to the little girl who had tears rolling down her rosy cheeks, a distressed look on her face. ''Have you hurt yourself?''_

_The little girl nodded, holding her arm up. ''I fell, and now it hurts really bad!'' her voice raised, the shock of the pain hitting her. ''I want dad! Where's dad!''_

_Pepper didn't know what to do, or where Tony was. The girl continued crying and Pepper lifted her up onto the bench to look at her arm. It was bruising already, potentially broken. ''Oh, no,'' Pepper lifted ice out of the freezer and placed it on her arm. ''Stay here, okay? I'm going to get your dad.''_

_''No!'' the girl's hands gripped Pepper's shirt and she lifted her arms out, Pepper took her into her arms and offered her a comforting hug. ''Don't go!''_

_Thankfully, Tony ran into the kitchen then, hearing Rebecca's cries. ''Hey, what's wrong baby?'' he hurried over and took Rebecca from Pepper, kissing her on the forehead to try and calm her sobs. _

_''I think she might have broken her arm.'' Pepper told him, and he pulled a face in reply._

_''That's not good,'' he looked at Rebecca's arm and nodded. ''We better take you to get that looked at.'' _

_Pepper watched as the little girl calmed down totally in the arms of her father. It was then she realised their bond, their connection with each other, as if they were tuned exactly to each other. They had only each other, and that was fine with them._

* * *

The night went slower than Rebecca had thought. When she glanced at her clock on her bedside table, it was 12.45am, and she waited for what felt like hours before looking back over at it as it read 1am. She couldn't sleep, her mind was racing. All she could think of was her dad and if he was okay. Nothing would let her mind rest, it was running at high speed all night. Pepper had taken up residency in the guest bedroom, and Rebecca could only guess that she was having the same problem. She opened the shutters on her window and looked out at the starsabove the city. She watched as the lights from the highway and the inner city lot up the lower parts of the sky and thought of how everyone else were living their lives as normal, at clubs and being driven around by taxis through the night and here she was making herself sick with worry. Rhodey would no doubt be conducting more searches of different areas, but he didn't want to call them through the night in case he worried them even more or gotten their hopes up. Rebecca had enough of trying to get to sleep, so she climbed out of bed and walked into the bathroom to take some pain killers in a hope that if her headache and stomach ache would die down, then she would be able to get some sleep. When she walked into the lounge room after taking some pain killers, she took a seat on the couch and turned on the television to the channel she had left it.

_''Stark Industries is handling it. We know what we're doing, and we know how to do it.'' _her father's voice came over the news as they were showing his last press conference where he was talking about the demonstration. _''Stark Industries will continue to equip and support the U.S military and there is no more further question about it.'' _The crowd applauded as Tony finished his speech and then a reporter took over, talking about how everything had gone downhill since the demonstration.

That's when Rebecca turned the television off and laid on the couch, looking out the big glass windows to the moon shining brightly. She felt herself slipping off slowing into sleep, and she wasn't sure whether it was the pain killers that had assisted her in her quest for sleep or it was the comforting sound of her father's voice on the television. Either way, she voluntarily closed her eyes and drifted away.

* * *

A few more days had managed to pass by, and there was still no more news concerning Tony's whereabouts. Rhodey had called a few times to let them know that everyone was still confident in finding him and that hope was still strong. Pepper and Rebecca remained at the house for the most part, except for when Rebecca had to go to the doctors and receive sleeping tablets. Pepper and Happy had arranged a good time to go so that no reporters or cameras would be able to get close enough to her, but they were still there. When Rebecca walked toward the car, Happy was standing by the door trying to get people away.

''Miss. Stark, how are you?'' asked one reporter. ''Have you heard any new information?'' the other asked.

''Alright, that's _enough_, you're harassing a child here! You people need to mind your own business.'' Happy told them all in a tone that Rebecca had never heard him use before.

''The public _deserve_ to know what's going on.'' one persistent reporter had the nerve to say.

There were so many things Rebecca would say if she had the energy, she was feisty to those reporters, especially when they had the mind to demand information that was obviously personal, but she hadn't slept for four days now, and she was in a constant state of dizziness.

''Okay, sorry about that. It's over now, we're gonna get you what you need, come home and you can sleep as long as you want.'' Pepper comforted her when she got into the car as well and Happy began driving.

''Can we...can we get some food, I'm a little hungry.'' she asked quietly. Pepper and Happy shared a glance of relief, she also hadn't eaten in a while, causing her to be sick throughout the day.

''Yeah, sure, absolutely.'' Happy answered, not hiding his relief well. ''Where to?''

''I feel like a cheeseburger.'' she told him, and he nodded happily before taking a turn to a fast food restaurant.

* * *

Another week had passed, still no news. Rebecca was getting better, catching up on her sleep, eating well again and Pepper was constantly keeping in touch Rhodey to make sure they hadn't missed any information. It turned into a routine for them - wake up, eat, make it through the day, sleep, repeat. The days began passing before Rebecca even realised, the only thing that kept her on track of the days was the news reports that she watched every single to day to see what information the pubic was being fed. Obadiah came over a few times as well, just to make sure Rebecca and Pepper were doing okay, but Rebecca didn't speak to him much, instead she just stared out the window as she was used to doing lately.

''How is she?'' Obadiah asked Pepper privately in the kitchen, looking over to the teenage girl in the living room who looked completely out of it.

''How do you_ think_ she's doing?'' Pepper sighed. ''I can't tell you how much she misses him. All she does is watch those reports on the news, wait for Rhodey to call, and just wait.''

Obadiah hung hid head sadly. ''Poor kid.'' he looked back over to her. ''I wish there was something to do for her.''

Pepper nodded. ''There's nothing we can do. Only support her and keep her spirits up.''

''Oh come on Pepper, I don't think her spirits will get any higher, her dad's missing.'' Obadiah pointed out as it Pepper wasn't already aware of how much Rebecca was going through.

''No, but we can make sure she doesn't lose hope. It's bad enough that everyone else seems to be so negative on the subject, she doesn't need to lose hope herself.'' Pepper explained.

Rebecca could hear every word they were saying. A skill she had picked up when she was younger and had practised with in the past few days. She was worrying them, but it wasn't intentional. She was shutting down, anxiety and stress taking over her she had no control. Sometime soon, she needed to get herself together for everyone around her, they had enough to worry about without an over-emotional teenage girl to take care of. She would get better, for Pepper, for Rhodey, and for her dad.


	5. Chapter 5

It was now officially two months since Tony had gone missing in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, hope had faded as each week went by, but Rhodey didn't give up. He and his air force team stayed over there and kept looking as other soldiers were removed. The reports of Tony's rescue mission turned into reports of Rebecca taking over his position in Stark Industries. It was a conversation she had avoided ever since it was brought up, and Pepper ensured no pressure would be placed on her about any decisions that weren't needed at that time. Pepper still held hope for Tony's return, is had lowered, but it was still there. Rebecca had started going back down to the workshop again, but she didn't touch her car. It was something that her and Tony were to work on together. She stopped asking Pepper if she'd heard from Rhodey, and she stopped obsessing over the television reports. She busied herself with little things, avoided the dreaded conversations about her father. At night she still looked out the window for hours on end and just wished for her dad to be okay, wherever he was. Sometimes she'd cry a little when something reminded her of her dad, and sometimes she'd cry a lot. She never gave up hope for her dad, she just hid herself away and put on a facade as to not worry those around her.

"Bec," Pepper walked in on Rebecca testing a little invention she was working on. "It's time."

Rebecca nodded and put down her equipment. Now she had to face the board at Stark Industries. All those questions that needed answering from all those people who hadn't seen her in two months. Occasionally when she went somewhere with Pepper the reporters would follow and try to speak with her, but she maneuvered her way out of the situations.

"Are you feeling okay?" Pepper looked concerned as they sat in the backseat of the car while Happy drove. Rebecca nodded, but Pepper could see the shakiness in her hands. "It's okay to be nervous. This isn't going to be easy, and you're very brave for agreeing to do this, but if you don't want-"

"I _want_ to do this." Rebecca nodded confidently. "They want to know things that no one else can tell them."

Pepper couldn't help feeling protective of her on a day like this. She'd watched her and been there for her through this entire ordeal, and she had watched her change into a lonely, introverted version of herself. It had been a hard two months, emotionally and physically. After dealing with Rebecca's sleeping disorder, Pepper then had to worry about her mental health. She'd never been without Tony before, not for so long anyway, and it was taking its toll. Thankfully Pepper was able to help and be with her, otherwise things could have taken a turn for the worst.

"Okay," Happy stopped the car outside of the company headquarters where there were reporters everywhere with cameras at the ready. "You ready?" Rebecca nodded.

As soon as Happy opened her door, the cameras were flashing. Her feet had not even made it out of the car yet and already he heard questions being screamed at her. "Do you still have hope?" "Do you think he'll come home?" "Are you prepared to step in for the company?" All of which remained unanswered as Rebecca ignored them and walked past. The flashes from the cameras were blinding, but she soon made her way to the door. Inside, she was welcomed by Obadiah Stane, helping her to the area where the board meeting would be. Rebecca stopped for a short moment to wait for Pepper to catch up. Inside the board room were about seventy of the companies most powerful members, all silencing as she entered.

"Okay now, just take a seat here," Obadiah pointed to her designated spot which held a pile of notes for suggested answers. "I'll be here, and Pepper will be there." he signaled them all.

"Actually," Rebecca spoke softly. "I'd like Pepper next to me." she requested. Obadiah nodded and moved Pepper up next to Rebecca, and he took a seat on the other side.

"Now just relax," he advised. "I'll help with whatever you need answering, and if you're unsure just allow me." Rebecca nodded at all of Obadiah's instructions, and then it was straight into the meeting.

The room was packed with people, and Rebecca could feel her fear from when she was a child creeping up on her. Her childhood anxiety made her fear large crowds, and over time and growth she'd adapted to the scene, but today was different when she was the one in front of them, especially when her dad want there to comfort her and make her feel safe.

"Miss. Stark," one man spoke, standing from his seat to draw her attention. "Is there a serious possibility of you taking over your father's position in the weapons manufacturing and design?"

Rebecca looked at the notes in front of her, but they were a bunch of scribble to her. "There is a...slight possibility of that, but only time will tell."

"Surely you can't take over from his role, given you are only sixteen years of age." he pointed out.

"Granted, I'm considerably younger than everyone else," she agreed. "But would _you_ know how to design these weapons? Because given your position in the board, it seems your expertise is_ selling_ these weapons sir, not creating them." she answered more bitterly than she had intended.

The man was satisfied, or offended, and he took his seat. The next person to rise was another man, looking happy with her previous response. The questions went on her about twenty minutes, all involving the company and it's future in the hands of a child, occasionally Obadiah would step in and answer instead. Until the questions became more personal, which is what Rebecca had been expecting.

"Miss. Stark, your father has been gone for over two months now, as he is and will be greatly missed by the company, but this company needs to survive, and in order to survive, we need to move on. Decisions need to be made." he held a good point, and for a moment Rebecca was lost for words.

"I really don't think this question is appropriate..." Pepper spoke.

"She's okay, aren't you?" Obadiah leant forward to face Rebecca, who then stood up from her seat to stand above the board.

"You've been asking me questions all morning, so I'm just going to project one back to all of you." she spoke confidently. "Why are you all speaking as if my father is_ dead_?"

It was the first time she used that word in a sentence with her father. The board members looked between one another and mumbled a few words, but no one definitively answered her. Pepper watched on worriedly, wondering what Rebecca was going to say next, and Obadiah sat back in his chair looking on.

"No one wants to answer me." she shrugged. "That's fine. It's so nice to know that you all have hope and empathy. I came here to answer your questions about this company due to all of your complaining about my ignorance towards Stark Industries these last two months. But you need to understand that I'm not _mourning_, and it's not a matter of healing. I'm _waiting_. My father is not dead, and this company is still in his hands. I think that's enough for today." she turned, and Pepper stood with her as they walked toward the door. None of the board members said anything, all silences by her speech. Obadiah smiled and waved before following them out the door into the main hall.

"Listen, I know that was harsh, but the board just needs to know. We need some sort of cover on Tony's position." he explained to Pepper and Rebecca. "I will be glad to take over for you, just until things settle."

"No." Rebecca spoke, shaking her head. "Nothing changes. Everything runs as normal."

"One day there's gotta be someone to step in, I just want you to be prepared." he told her.

"Well, when that day comes, far into the future, I'll step in. But that's my decision at the moment." Rebecca looked at him seriously, hoping he would respect her decision.

He went to speak again, but nodded in agreement as Pepper flashed him a warning look.

* * *

Later that night, Rebecca took a break from being in the workshop and turned on the television, only to be met with the reports of the Stark Industries board meeting. Videos of her walking from the car to the door were replaying as the reporter spoke.

_"Daughter of billionaire weapons designer Tony Stark, who is still missing in Afghanistan, has appeared for the first time in public today since the disappearance of her father two months ago. It's said that she was there discussing the matters of her father's position within the company and reviewing the company's performance without the leading man."_

She changed the channel after the report and settled on watching a really lame drama, just to take her mind off the crappy day she'd had. It really frustrated her that Obadiah kept pushing the issue of relieving her dad's position. Nevertheless, Rebecca was determined to stand her ground.

"Hey," Pepper walked into the room, holding take out menus. "I thought some food would make this day a bit better. You hungry?"

Rebecca smiled. "Yeah, you choose." she encouraged Pepper.

"Hmm," Pepper looked through the menus. "Thai, pizza, Chinese." she thought to herself. "Can never have enough Chinese food I suppose." Pepper laughed before picking up the phone to order.

Pepper had been so understanding and supportive these last few months. Rebecca don't even have to say anything anymore without Pepper knowing whether she was having a good day or one of the bad ones. She also knew which topics not to bring up, it was as if Pepper could read her mind. They had gotten used to each other, they were family.

* * *

It was now the three month mark in Tony's disappearance. Rebecca had no more appointments with the board, and she had heard very little from Obadiah in regards to the issue. Pepper still wasn't working, although the company continued to pay her on strong words from Rebecca herself, although Pepper didn't know that. They'd received a few more disappointing calls from Rhodey, but other than that, they were still living as normal as they could possibly have been in the last few months.

"Bec," Pepper called her on the intercom as Rebecca played around with a test invention down in the workshop. "I made some lunch if you're hungry."

Rebecca sat down one of her tools for a minute to reply to Pepper. "Be there in a sec,"

She was used to this now. Pepper had made sure she was eating three or more times a day since her anxiety had gotten the best of her in the first month of her father's absence. She'd lost a considerable amount of weight through stress and anxiety, but she was slowly getting herself back in track, even though the anxiety was still just as bad, the medication had been helping.

When Rebecca made it up to the kitchen, she washed her hands before picking at her plate of food that Pepper had prepared. It was a sunny day in California, although Rebecca hardly ever paid any attention to it anymore. It was then, in the middle of lunch, that the phone call came.

"I'll get it," Rebecca slid off her stool and made her way over to the phone, immediately recognizing the phone number. "Rhodey?" she answered, not expecting any significant news.

"Bec," his voice was out if breath and he sounded as if he was crying. Rebecca's heart began beating wildly in her chest just like when she was first told about everything. "We got him. We...we found him Bec. Your dad. He's safe, he's coming home."

Rebecca's body went numb, her hands loosing grip of the phone as it fell to the floor with a smash. She stood there, speechless, as Pepper came over and shook her.

"Rebecca! What's happened! _Rebecca!_" she yelled, trying to get through to her.

"They..." Rebecca breathed, speaking so quietly that Pepper had to move in closer. "Dad..."

"Yes?" Pepper encouraged. "Oh god, sweetie, tell me." she was worrying.

"Found...him." Rebecca mumbled before her legs gave way, her body losing all feeling and everything went black, the shock taking it's toll.


	6. Chapter 6

When Rebecca opened her eyes again, she was sitting on the lounge with Pepper next to her holding a cool towel to her head. It was soothing, just like she had woken up from one of the greatest dreams she could have imagined. Except this wasn't a dream, she hoped.

"Pepper..." her voice cracked. "Is it true?" she asked nervously.

Peppers lips tugged up into a smile. "It's true. Rhodey said they found him walking in the desert looking for help."

"Is he okay? Is he hurt? Where is he?" she shot up on the seat, but her head began thumping.

"Easy," Pepper knelt her back down. "You hit your head on the tiles. Your dad's fine, considering what he's been through. He's being assessed by a medical team at the moment, he'll arrive back in California early tomorrow morning."

Rebecca was still processing the fact that her dad was alive, that Rhodey had found him, that everything that both Pepper and Rhodey had promised her was true, it just took some time. However, it wasn't excitement she felt, it was doubt and worry and even more anxiety.

"This isn't a dream is it? This is happening?" she had to asked Pepper again, just for confirmation.

Pepper grinned. "It's not a dream sweetie." she grabbed her hand. "Your dad's coming home, I swear."

Rebecca shook her head. "I can't..." she struggled for words. "Are they sure it's him?"

"Sweetie-"

"Are they _sure_?" Rebecca cut her off, not giving her a fair chance to explain. "Because mistakes have happened before, I know they have!"

"It's him." Pepper tried to calm her, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Rhodey found him himself. I know you're in a state where it's going to be hard to accept this after so long, but you need to understand that no one would make you believe your father was alive if they weren't one hundred percent sure." Pepper explained.

Rebecca shook her head, still disbelieving. She hadn't given up hope for her father in these last three months, but she had become so numb to the idea of him coming home again after all of the disappointing outcomes they has reached in finding him.

"We've been invited to meet them at the airport when they arrive tomorrow morning." Pepper informed. "Happy will take us early enough to be there when they land, so don't worry." Pepper then left the room to answer her cell in the kitchen.

It couldn't be him. No chance of it, not after all this time. There had been so many 'close calls' while they'd been searching for Tony that Rebecca found herself almost immune to all the failures, so to now deal with a success, she was hardly prepared.

* * *

Rebecca sat on her bed staring out of her window as the sun began to creep through the dark sky early the next morning. She had no sleep, giving her the same mental anguish as when her father first when missing. Every time she had attempted to sleep during the night, her mind began racing at the thought of everyone thinking her dad was alive and being, once again, disappointed.

"Rebecca? Are you awake?" Pepper knocked at her door a few hours later. "Bec?" she softly opened the door and stepped inside.

"I'm awake." Rebecca turned to Pepper with dark eyes, mirroring the same girl that Pepper had helped through the first month of this ordeal. "But I'm not going."

Pepper sighed. "Bec, it doesn't have to be like this."

Rebecca ran her fingers through her hair. "I'm not angry, I'm not sad, I'm not...anything. I just don't want to go, that's all." she explained calmly. "I _can't_ go."

Pepper walked over and took a seat on the bed with her. "I understand...the denial, and I understand why you don't want to go, but do you really want to miss this? Your dad finally coming home, and I'm betting you're the only person he wants to see waiting for him."

Rebecca turned away from Pepper, almost ashamed at her decision. "I just...if it _is_ him, I don't know what to do. I don't want to..I just can't go."

Pepper thought to herself before speaking. "You can stay in the car if that's what it takes. Just don't stop yourself from being there because you're scared." Pepper gave her a comforting smile. "Just think about it okay?"

Pepper then left the room, leaving Rebecca and her thoughts to themselves. Pepper was right though. If Tony got off that jet and Rebecca wasn't there, she could never forgive herself. After all this waiting, she couldn't just let something like this go.

Not long after their talk, Rebecca made her way into the living room after having a long, relaxing shower to try and gain at least some energy. She was paler than usual, and the dark rings around we eyes weren't convincing at all that she was okay. It was like hitting rock bottom once again, after all the work she had put into getting herself better.

"You didn't sleep at all, did you?" Pepper handed her a coffee, choosing not to comment on her changed decision.

Rebecca shrugged her shoulders "I don't know." she took a few sips of her coffee, enjoying the caffeine hit. "I'm sorry about before, I was being...well, selfish."

"No," Pepper defended her. "You were having your doubts, as you have every right to. This can't be easy for you, and I respect any decision you make after watching you rebuild yourself these last few months. There is nothing you could do that would ever make me think you're being selfish."

Rebecca gave her a weak grin, sipping at her coffee once again. She sat it down momentarily as she pulled her dress coat over her clothes, fastening one button at the front to keep it in place. After a few minutes of silence between them both, Happy arrived to take them to the airport.

"You okay?" Pepper asked. "You ready?"

Rebecca shook her head. "No, but I can do this...I think."

* * *

They'd been waiting about twenty minutes before the military jet was in view and making its landing. It was loud and forceful, but that wasn't what made Rebecca's nerves uneasy. It was who may be inside. She had decided not to sit in the car, but stand outside of it, gaining a better view. Pepper stood over by the other soldiers who were waiting for the arrival of their comrades and the man they had all been searching for. As the jet landed, Rebecca's hands began shaking uncontrollably with anxiousness, waiting to see if her dad would make his way from the doors, and it was not long before it actually happened. Tony's silhouette was recognizable by his daughter, and by Pepper as she turned and looked at Rebecca's expression. As her father's familiar face became clear, she felt as if a weight had just dropped down onto her chest and she had a hard time drawing breath. She had her hands covering her mouth, hiding her emotional reaction. Tony walked out the back of the jet, next to Rhodey, who was assisting him. His arm was in a sling, and he had multiple cuts and bruises on his face. He could see Pepper standing before him, welcoming him back with tears of joy. They shared a few words before his attention turned to the car not far from the crowd of people. Rhodey and Pepper instructed the others to let Tony reunite with his daughter alone before speaking with him, and they began thanking each other. The closer Tony got to Rebecca, the more tears she shed. She was on the verge of hyperventilating if she wasn't already, and Tony's heart broke at the sight of his daughter being so fragile.

"Dad?" she asked through the muffled noises of her cries. She tried to convince herself it was real, but a part of her felt like she was dreaming.

Tony held it together though for her sake. "Hey, hey, it's okay, I'm here." he reached his arm out and connected with hers, startling her, assuring her body it wasn't a dream. She couldn't stop crying, and for the first time since she was very young, Tony couldn't calm her down, but he tried. "I'm so sorry baby, I'm so sorry I put you through this." he pulled her into a tight hug, speaking softly into her ear.

Rebecca's body wouldn't allow her to respond for a while, trying to adjust to the situation. She didn't know what to say. "Please...don't _ever_ leave me." she begged, wrapping her arms around her dad. "I don't know what to do anymore dad, I missed you so much!" she cried more.

"Shh, shh, it's okay." he ran his fingers through her hair. "I'm here, okay? I'm here. I promise I won't go anywhere, I'm _here_."

"Everyone said...you were dead." she closed her eyes as she buried her face in his shoulder.

"Look at me," he pushed her back lightly before lifting her chin up to look at him. "I'm _right_ here, alive, and I'm not going anywhere." he convinced her as she pulled herself back into his arms. "I'm so sorry I put you through this."

Rebecca calmed her tears as they turned into sobs. "I don't want you to go anywhere."

"I won't." Tony assured her.

Rhodey looked over at Tony and Rebecca, holding her in his arms with an obvious look of relief on his face, but he then shook his head, and Rhodey just nodded understandingly. There was no way he was talking to anyone right now, not when he had just gotten his daughter back.

* * *

They left the two of them alone for almost an hour, letting Rebecca get out all of her tears and come to terms with things. When Pepper was finished thanking the soldiers and Rhodey, she made her way back to Tony and Rebecca, climbing into the backseat of the car as Happy turned to ask where they were going, after welcoming Tony back home.

"To the hospital." Pepper instructed cooly.

"No," Tony shook his head. "I'm not going to the hospital."

"No?" Pepper asked, shocked. "Tony the medics said you have to go get checked." she concerned.

"I don't _have_ to do anything." he gave her a knowing look, his attitude that Pepper missed returning. "I want you to call for a press conference."

"What?" Pepper asked in a raised voice. "You're not serious."

"I know what I need to do, Pepper." he assured.

"Dad..." Rebecca looked worried. "What are you doing?"

"Trust me."

* * *

Pepper looked very concerned and a little frustrated when they returned home from the press conference. Tony had changed the way the public viewed the company and him himself, labellum him mentally unstable as a result of his captivity. He had vowed to stop the weapons manufacturing of his company, which was it's sole operation. Obadiah wasn't thrilled with the idea, but any decision made by Tony was almost impossible to override. It was as if Tony had walked off the jet and back into his normal life, everyone almost looked over the issue of his three month captivity since he seemed just as capable as he did before, and his arrogant, playful attitude was already back in place. Rebecca thought it would take a while for her dad to adjust back into his normal life, she had been doing research on people who have experienced captivity, but it took her dad almost no effort before he was back in the swing of things. Rebecca, on the other hand, was overwhelmed by her dad's return, and hadn't left his side since they had reunited. During the press conference though, she decided to sit in the other room while it was being held, but she was still within view of her father. She had told him of the company's plans to override his position and how she had vowed to take his place if anyone was to make that move. Rebecca knew her father better than anyone. Better than Obadiah, and better than Pepper, and she knew he was hiding something from her. It was something that he wasn't quite sure how to tell her about.

As Tony finished his shower and walked into his room, which was just as he left it after Rebecca had sworn not to touch, remove or change anything after he'd left, he stopped by the mirror on his wall and stared at his chest. Where his heart was, where his only hope for life was. The blue circle lit up, making it impossible to miss.

''Dad?'' Rebecca came to the door, pushing it open slowly. He didn't want to hide it from her, but this wasn't the way he wanted to reveal it to her. He didn't want to show her the little arc reactor that was lodged in his chest, the only thing keeping him alive as a result of the brutal wounds he suffered from being attacked. ''What...what's that?'' she walked closer, and Tony just watched her reaction quietly. ''What happened to you?'' she asked, mesmerized by the circle. ''Are you okay?'' Rebecca continued asking him but he didn't speak, he couldn't find the words. All he wanted to do was hold her close, knowing how lucky he was to even be able to do that. ''Dad, please talk to me. C'mon, we tell each other everything.''

Tony then nodded in agreement, gesturing for her to sit on the edge of the bed with him after he pulled a shirt around his shoulders, leaving a few buttons undone at the circle so he could explain.

''Just...'' Tony stuttered for an accurate expression. ''know that I'm _okay now_. All of this, just...I'm okay now, and that's all that matters.''

Rebecca nodded sadly, bracing herself for what she was about to be told.

**Sorry this chapter took a while, I've had a lot to do these past few days and I hadn't got around to updating. Hope you enjoy, and I appreciate all the lovely reviews. I'll try and update sooner next chapter!**


	7. Chapter 7

"After...the attack, everything's a bit blurry in my mind. I was taken by the Ten Rings, a terrorist group." Tony ran his fingers through his short hair, and It was obvious he didn't like reliving the memories, but he wanted her to know. "But when I woke up, in this...cave, I had this," he pointed to the circle of light in his chest. "in my chest, and it was hooked up to a car battery, and that's how I survived the first few weeks." Rebecca felt her heart drop at Tony explaining to her just how lucky he was to be alive. "During the attack, a missile landed not very far from me, and I tried to run but I just wasn't quick enough. I was hit by the shrapnel, and it stayed in my body, slowly making it's way to my heart, killing me. Yinsen, the only other captive there with me, designed this electromagnet. It keeps the pieces of tiny metal from making its way to my heart. This is what keeps me alive."

Rebecca didn't know what to say exactly, there were too many things she wanted to say, but when you hear about your father's life being held by a miniature arc reactor, you aren't in a state of mind to express yourself. She could see the worry in Tony's eyes, but it wasn't for his life. It was worry that his daughter would look at him differently now, because he couldn't do anything to stop what was happening. He couldn't even keep himself alive, he had to have a magnet embedded in him for that. He was afraid she wouldn't see the same father she had always had, instead a broken, weak man. He couldn't have been more wrong though. Rebecca was still processing the fact that this wasn't something little, or something that could be treated and medicated. It was permanent, and it was deadly.

"Does it..." she reached her hand out to the circle before pulling back. "Does it _hurt_ you?" she asked softly.

Tony grabbed her hand and rested it on top of the circle, showing her it wasn't something that was easily broken, it wasn't as fragile as it seemed. "No, I can't feel it." he answered, watching as she studied. "It just stops the shrapnel moving in my body. A magnet."

Rebecca looked at the marks on the little circle, the detail put into creating it. Such a tiny, harmless appearance, but such a significant role. She looked up at her father who still held the worried look in his eyes. "I can't believe what they did...all for a missile."

"They're terrorists, they'll do anything." Tony began covering the circle. "I'm just one of the lucky ones, I got away."

"How did you get away?" Rebecca asked before thinking.

"I'll tell you about that another time, I think you've had enough of an overload from me tonight." he hung his head.

"Dad," she nudged him to look up at her. "I'm really proud of you."

Her words struck Tony unexpectedly. All his shame and regret was swimming through him, thinking she had lost faith in him, and she says the complete opposite. He grinned, looking at the same little girl he remembered from when she was younger, she still had the same innocence and warmth, and her faith in him was still there.

"I love you, dad." she pulled herself closer to him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, embracing him in a tight hug. "Always will."

Tony breathed deeply and pulled her closer to him. "I love you too." he spoke quietly.

Pepper came to the door not long after, seeing if he wanted some dinner, and her heart warmed at the sight of the father and daughter, so she left them be.

"Have you told anyone about what happened?" Rebeca asked, breaking their silence as they sat comfortably on the bed. "About..." she pointed to his chest.

"The public know very little of what happened, and I had to tell the government the whole story. But this," he tapped the circle of light on his chest. "only Rhodey and Pepper know, and now you."

After another moment of silence, Tony decided to take the topic off of him and talk about her, since this had now turned into a sharing session. He didn't want to ask her anything personal because he knew it would hit soles nerves, so he just asked about issues relating to the press and the company.

"I went to a board meeting, and they wanted someone to take over your position in weapons manufacturing, but they couldn't do anything unless I agreed. Which I_ didn't_." she told him, and he smirked at her stubbornness, definitely reminding him of himself. "Obadiah wanted to take the position, but I didn't want to change anything. I think he might have got a little annoyed with me."

"What? Really?" Tony asked, a hint of surprise in his voice. "Obi?"

"Yeah, I don't know why he'd want the position." Rebecca shrugged.

For the next few hours, Tony and Rebecca talked about all that had been going on within the company and how the reporters would chase her around asking about him. It was, in a way, very relaxing. It made Rebecca feel as though he hadn't been gone, the way they just talked the same way as they used to. She was worried he would take some time to adjust back into things, but he didn't. All he had been wanting and surviving for the last few months were for his daughter to be okay, and now that he was here with her, and she was safe, he was okay as well. As the conversation died, Rebecca had peacefully fallen asleep on her dads bed, which led to him peeling back some of the blankets to lay over her, smiling at the sound of her soft snores. He sat there for a while just watching her sleep, content. That's all he could want, and all that he'd been hoping for, that she was alright, and he was now looking at her before him, safe and sound.

* * *

Tony walked out into the kitchen after he made sure Rebecca was comfortable, and Pepper was just preparing to turn the television off when the latest news reports were over. Tony, as expected, had made headlines with his return, but also for his unexpected decision to shut down the weapons manufacturing of his company. The press had labelled him mentally unsound, using his three months of captivity as his reasons for the decision. Post traumatic stress was nothing new, they had all been warned that Tony was at risk of developing it, but he knew what he was doing.

"Where's Bec?" Pepper asked, turning so that her back wasn't to him when he took a seat on the couch with a bottle of water.

"Asleep, exhausted." he yawned.

He and Pepper had already had time to talk about things, everything that happened to him and all that had to be taken care of, and that's why Pepper had been watching the news, figuring out what needed to be fixed.

"Really?" Pepper glanced at her watch. "And without taking anything." she made a face in disbelief before ordering her folder.

Tony looked confused. "What do you mean?" he asked. "Take _what_?"

Pepper sighed. "She just hasn't slept well since...well, for the past few months. The doctor prescribed some sleeping pills, that's the only way she can get some sleep."

"She's taking sleeping pills? She used to sleep all the time, no problem." Tony couldn't believe his daughter, who some mornings refused to leave her bed, had trouble getting any sleep. Pepper looked around nervously, knowing he was going to ask her more, so she took it upon herself.

"A few weeks after all this began, I took her to the doctor, she wasn't sleeping, eating or doing _anything_ really." she explained as Tony listened intently. "She was diagnosed with mild depression. She had to be medicated, and was prescribed sleeping pills to help as well."

The look on Tony's face was enough to make Pepper look away. Mixed emotions crossed his face. All the grief that he had caused his daughter, at such a young age. All this time since he had come home he had been trying to make sure Rebecca was okay, but he could never ask her personally.

"Depression?" he looked up at Pepper after a brief pause. "All of this...made her develop depression?"

Pepper nodded slowly. "_Mild_, not full blown depression. The only person she'd ever been with her whole life was you, and then you were gone. I tried my best, and the medication helped her, but I'm not you, Tony. I couldn't make her okay, I couldn't comfort her like you can."

Tony shook his head. "No, Pepper, you've been amazing. You're the only one I'd trust to take care of her during all of this, the only one," he placed his hands on her shoulders. "I'll always be in debt to you for what you've done." Pepper grinned, thanking him for his words. "You've gotta tell me what else has happened. How did she find out?"

Pepper began explaining to Tony everything that had happened following his disappearance, starting from the morning that they had to tell Rebecca. Throughout everything Pepper was saying, she would sometimes take notice of the fear in Tony's eyes, the way he had to look away from her as she spoke and he fumbled with his fingers. He didn't like hearing about Rebecca not leaving the house in weeks at a time, and having to answer to the board while she was dealing with everything else.

"She's been brave Tony, really brave." Pepper told him. "Even me, on my best days, I don't think I could've handled this the way she has. I'd been expecting many, many tears and breakdowns...but she's just been wry introverted."

Tony let all of the information sink in before he thanked Pepper once again, making sure she understood his appreciation. Pepper began to gather her things and return to her apartment that she had only spent the days in these past few months, but Tony insisted she was welcome to stay after all she had done. A part of him felt more comfortable with Pepper in the house, she kept him organized and he especially needed help getting organized in the next few days.

* * *

Tony returned to his room after having some food and wandering around the house for a while, taking in all the changes which were few, and feeling comfort in knowing he was back at home. Rebecca was still sound asleep when he walked into the room, her faint snores continuing, and Tony took his seat once again across from the bed to observe. He just watched her peaceful expression as she breathed heavily in her sleep. All she had been through, everything he had unintentionally thrown her into had all caused her so much pain, it was hurtful for him to think about. He reached his hand out and brushed the hair from her eyes as it fell down, kneeling down to give her a soft kiss on her forehead before walking out of the room once again, leaving her to rest.

Tony made his way down to the workshop, effortlessly putting the code into the door out of habit, and the lights lit up the room as he walked inside. All of his equipment remained relatively untouched, apart from a few tools here and there. He walked straight to his workbench and unlocked his computer, remembering all of the codes although they had been the furthest thing from his mind in months.

"Jarvis, miss me?" he spoke.

"Indeed I have, sir." Jarvis answered.

Tony took a moment to think to himself, remembering all of the things he had seen during his captivity. All of the pain and death that the Ten Rings had caused so many people and their villages, all of the screams of terror and gunfire. Everything they had done to Tony, changing his life forever. All the pain they had caused his family. Tony was breathing heavily with anger, remembering how he escaped from them. Yinsen hadn't been so lucky, but Tony know that he found his eventual peace. The suit he created was just the beginning, just the start of his new mission. Revenge.


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning, Rebecca awoke in the same position she last remembered being awake, on her dads bed after they had talked. Or during, she wasn't quite sure. All she knew was she was so tired she just needed to close her eyes for a minute, and now it was morning, and not early morning, it was around nine.

"Didn't think you were gonna wake up." Tony greeted her in the kitchen as she walked into the room. There was a coffee sitting in the bench from Starbucks, no doubt from Pepper now that she was back to work. Tony continued reading the paper where he had made headlines.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" she asked, taking the lid off the coffee for it to cool, sitting on the stool next to the bench. "I haven't slept in this late since..." she trailed off, looking at the clock. "Well, a _long_ time."

Tony set the paper down, looking up at Rebecca. "Pepper's told me, about your...condition." he informed her. "I just want you to know you can talk to me about anything, I'll always tell you the truth."

Rebecca nodded thoughtfully. "Don't think I'm a wreck or anything...I'm not a mess, I can handle myself." she told him calmly. The one thing that prevented her from telling her father about her diagnosis personally was that she worried he would treat her like glass, when in fact she was far from fragile after what she had been through. "But thank you."

Tony nodded, then sighed as he looked out the windows. "It's good to be back home. I don't wanna leave this place."

"Then don't." Rebecca chimed in. "You don't have to, you can just stay here all day. You don't have to go anywhere, no ones gonna force you." she encouraged, wanting her dad to stay in the house.

Tony grinned. "Wish I could kiddo, but I've gotta to down to the company headquarters, clear up some things with Obadiah." he explained.

Rebecca slumped her shoulders, her spirits lowering. Everyone was pressuring her father to get back to work, or do more press conferences, more interviews, more statements, more everything and it frustrated Rebecca. They didn't respect his privacy before all of this, and now they still didn't, despite what had happened. Pepper had been doing her best to take care of the publicity and take some of the load off of Tony, but there was only a certain amount she could do on her own. There was no use I'm Rebecca trying to help, the company basically thought she didn't give a damn about it.

"Well," she sighed. "I'm coming with you then."

* * *

Happy drove Tony and Rebecca down to the company headquarters, driving into the back entrance so that the reporters wouldn't bother either of them as they made their way inside. Obadiah was waiting for them when they arrived, not surprised that Rebecca had come along as well.

"Tony," he put his arm around his shoulder. "Ready to go back to business?" he asked joyfully. Obadiah and Tony had already spoke together since his return, clearly only a few things up, nothing in depth, which is why he was here today. "Have you taken some time to, y'know, rethink this idea you've been having?"

Rebecca looked between them. "What idea?" she asked when neither of them spoke.

"Nothing major," Tony brushed off the topic. "But I'm still sticking to my words Obi. No more weapons, not happening."

Obadiah sighed, a disappointed look coming into view. "Tony, this company needs to do what's best, and this isn't taking the company in a good direction."

"This is what needs to be done. The weapons aren't helping, they're making things worse. We're selling to terrorists and murderers, and this company won't be apart of it." Tony told him firmly, but Obadiah still seemed unimpressed.

Rebecca soon departed from her father for a short while as he continued the company conversations with Obadiah. They were mostly about what he had missed, stocks, investors and the issue of his position since his absence had confused people about who would take over from him should something happen. Rebecca didn't want to be the one to do her dad's job when it came time, but she certainly didn't want anyone else from the company to do it. After she had wandered around the place for a while, she returned back to Tony and Obadiah, but when she realized they were in the middle of a serious conversation, she stood back by the door, quietly observing.

"Who told you?" Tony asked Obadiah calmly. "Rhodey or Pepper?"

"Tony..." Obadiah gave him a mildly concerned look, but a hint of annoyance.

"Okay, fine." Tony scanned the room for anyone else, but they were there alone. Then, he pulled at the top buttons of his shirt and revealed the arc reactor in his chest. Obadiah didn't say anything, he just took a moment to study, observing the little circle embedded within him. After a few moments he took Tony's shirt and covered up his chest as if there was something hideous beneath it. "It works." Tony told him. "And I'll be doing more work with the arc reactor."

"Tony," Obadiah spoke sternly. "It's dead end, we've been there." Tony shrugged his shoulders, clearly not following any of Obadiah's guidance. "Listen, just...think things over, take some time to yourself..." Obadiah told him before leaving the room, passing her by the door.

Rebecca watched as her dad stood alone, obviously frustrated by everything that had happened in the last few hours. She just wanted him to go home, stay away from this place for a while and relax, but there was something keeping him motivated. Something to do with the arc reactor given his keen interest in the equipment. At first, she decided not to walk back into the room, letting her dad have a moment to himself, but he soon spotted her over by the door.

"Why are you hiding?" Tony chuckled, looking confused. Rebecca took a few steps back into the room, shrugging her shoulders. "Hey, what's up?" Tony worried.

Rebecca shook her hands in defense. "Nothing, nothing's wrong." she told him. "I just...I don't want you coming back here and getting yourself all stressed so quickly. You need some rest."

Tony sighed. "I get it, I do. But you gotta see it from my point of view. I've been gone three months, that's enough time to think about a lot of things I want to do in this company. It takes my mind off of a lot of things, and to be honest, I've missed it. Trust me, this isn't wearing me down, I'm used to it." he confidently assured her.

"Oh yeah? Well, Obadiah doesn't seem too impressed by everything. He never disagrees with you dad. Not on running the company." she pointed out. "What are you doing that everyone seems the hate so much?"

"I'm just fixing things. This company hasn't been taking responsibility for a long time, and partly...mainly, because of me. I'm doing all I can to make things right though, it just takes time." he explained. "Don't worry about it, don't worry about me. I've been doing this since I was your age, I can handle a few board members."

Rebecca nodded, giving her father a look of understanding. She knew he was capable of doing anything, but she felt so protective of him now that he was home after so long, she didn't want to see him stressed over some unnecessary work problems.

"C'mon, let's go." Tony gestured toward the door. "How 'bout some take out? I've missed that. Mmm, Chinese, or Thai? Both."

"Only if we spend the rest of the day at home, eating take out and watching cartoons." she grinned at him. That was their thing when Rebecca was little. Tony would endure horrible cartoons every afternoon when she came home from school, but it was all worth it when he saw his little girl giggling at the television with such happiness and innocence. He had actually grown to love those cartoons because of it.

"Deal." he laughed, swinging his arm around her shoulder as they walked through the corridors back to Happy.

* * *

The afternoon was spent doing exactly as they had planned earlier in the day. Take out food, old cartoons, no work or company interruptions and completely stress free. They had laughed at the corny humor in the cartoons and the bad quality, but it was just as good as they remembered. They needed an afternoon like this, it was perfect. It took away all of Rebecca's anxiety over her dad's well being, and it took Tony's mind off of hers. They were a family again, after all the heartache they had been through.

After all of the cartoons had finished and it was turning the dusk, Tony decided to go back down to the workshop as Rebecca had busied herself with one of her projects. He walked past the car he and Rebecca had even working on, oblivious to the fact that underneath the sheet that covered it was a broken, smashed car that needed more work than he thought. It hadn't gone unnoticed to Tony that Rebecca didn't spend any time down here anymore, but he decided not to question her about it.

Tony walked over to his desk, bringing his computer up to his latest project. "Okay, bring up all of the prototype sketches and measurements, time to work."

"As you wish, sir." Jarvis followed the instructions.

Two hours had passed since Ton had been working on the suit by himself. Rebecca had considered going down to the workshop and wondering what her dad was working on, but she decided against it. She wanted her dad to have some time to himself, especially in the workshop where he enjoyed working. She felt as though she had been following Tony around like a puppy since he got home, although Tony didn't mind, he enjoyed spending time with her. He felt guilty for hiding his latest project from her, but at this point in time, not even he knew what he planned to do once the suit was created. He didn't want to drag her into something so dangerous and overwhelming, she needed to adjust to what had happened lately first. Pepper had arrived not long after Tony had began working and had started working on a list of things that Tony would have to do soon.

"Obi's here," Pepper's voice came over the intercom. "Tony?" she asked again, but Tony was immersed in the projections of the model for the suit. "Tony, can you answer me?" Again, she was met with silence. "For god's sake." she groaned, frustrated.

It took Pepper scolding him two times before he left his computer and grade upstairs to meet Obadiah in the living room, fresh from a board meeting in New York. Obadiah rolled his eyes at Tony's mockery after he immediately knew things didn't go well, but little did he know what had actually happened within the board meeting. They talked briefly about the stocks of the company before Obadiah told him what was now going in.

"There's been an injunction filed against you." he informed him. Tony gave him an outraged look. "They're shutting you out Tony."

"What? But it's _my_ company." he defended himself, still confused as to what he was being told.

Rebecca heard the voices in the living room and quietly made her way out, hiding subtly behind the wall in the kitchen, listening intently.

"The board has rights too Tony. They think this...new direction your taking isn't in the company's best interests." Obadiah explained calmly. "I'm sorry Tony."

Tony shook his head in disbelief. "All because of the weapons? We can do more than just that. This direction I'm taking is for the grater good, why can't the board see that?" he threw his hands up.

"We're not humanitarians Tony, this company was built to protect our country with weapons, not work toward world peace."

"You don't get it." Tony looked over at Obadiah, seriousness and anger in his eyes, but Obadiah did nothing to defend himself. "Fine."

"Tony," Obadiah whined, trying to stop Tony from walking away. "Tony, why don't you show me then? Show me what you're working on, and we'll see-"

"Nope, sorry." Tony shrugged, walking away. "Not gonna happen."

"Tony!" Obadiah persisted.

"Sorry Obi, this one stays with me." he gave him a cheeky smile, although not meaningful, and walked back down the stairs toward the workshop again.

Rebecca didn't know that Obadiah was not apart of her dad's latest project for the company. It made her more intrigued and curious as to what Tony was doing down there. Arc reactor technology was being used, both Obadiah and Rebecca knew that, but no one knew why. Now the board had even turned their back on Tony, 'shutting him out' as Obadiah described, not on board with the idea. Although, it wasn't exactly that they disliked the idea, it was the fact they didn't know what it was. It also interested Rebecca to see that her dad was less bothered by the news that he was being shunned by the company, his reaction was extremely unusual.

"He'll be alright." Obadiah told Pepper as he sat back down. "He just needs to get his head together."

Rebecca scowled, still out of sight, at Obadiah's comment. She hated him always saying that Tony needed some time to 'sort his mind out' or 'get his head together', because it made him sound as if he had gone crazy. Even with the unusual secretiveness her dad had taken on, she knew he wasn't crazy.

Rebecca waited for Obadiah and Pepper to start another conversation about something else before she made her way down the same stairs and to the workshop. She didn't open the door at first, instead she just observed from behind the corner of the door. The room was lit up with all different projections of armor, what looked like sketches of a robot and weapons, all on display before her. Quietly, she put in the code for the door and she walked inside. Tony's music was quite loud, and she was unsure if he had heard her enter. He was designing some sort of full-body armor, the sketches were extremely vivid and detailed.

"Dad?" she must have startled him, he looked at her with wide eyes. "What's all of this?"


	9. Chapter 9

All of the hologram parts surrounded Rebecca, who was completely lost in them, as Tony searched quietly for words. He wasn't prepared for her to see this now, but he had become so caught up in the idea of making this work.

"Uh, just some ideas. Taking things to a new level." he casually informed her, not revealing too much. "It's nothing important...well, not yet."

Rebecca took her eyes away from all of the images flashing around her. "A new level? As opposed to...?" she raised her eyebrow, walking over to his desk to view the computer sketches that Jarvis had created. "A suit of armor?"

Tony shrugged his shoulders, not exactly nodding but he wasn't denying anything either. "Sort of...it's nothing yet, just a bit of an idea, a sort of...vision." he told her, and she soon nodded along, seeming to believe him.

All of this reminded her of just how much her dad had changed. It wasn't an emotional change, and it wasn't a physical change. She knew he wasn't telling her everything, and that was fine, she didn't want to know everything and she didn't ask for that. All she wanted was to know why he didn't want to tell her everything, they never lied to each other, or his anything for one another. With all of this new drama with the board an the company shutting him out because of his 'new ideas', it made her worry more, which prompted her to ask.

"Dad," she turned toward him. "I just want you to tell me the truth about this." she gave a look of sincerity. "Why is the board shutting you out?"

Tony sighed, knowing she had heard the conversation. Ever since she was little she would do that, sneaking out into the kitchen or the lounge room and listening in whenever she could hear him arguing with someone.

_"Pepper, this isn't...I know...ugh!" Tony defended himself to Pepper's list of things she had told him he needed to do but, as usual, he had chosen otherwise. "Can you take a breath?"_

_Pepper took a deep breath, calming herself. "You have to start taking this seriously then-"_

_Tony held up his finger to his lips, signaling for Pepper to be quiet. She was just about to protest when he walked over and put his finger on her lip instead, using his other hand to point to the corner. Over by the lounge, there was the top of a head peaking out beside the cushions. Pepper recognized the brown messy hair as Rebecca's, and soon caught on. Tony's lip tugged into a playful grin as he snuck behind the lounge and tiptoed behind his daughter until he was right beside her._

_"What did I tell you about eavesdropping?" he spoke quickly._

_Rebecca's body shot up and she took a huge step forward away from the figure behind her. Her screams justified just how scared she was by her dad, her face holding a look of terror._

_"Dad!" she yelled, hitting her dad with as much force as she could on the shoulder. "Don't!"_

_Tony couldn't help laughing at her response, she was so rattled by his scare, which only fueled one of her tantrums. Pepper stood over in the middle of the room, smiling at them, before she settled back into reviewing all of Tony's work since he was obviously done with work for the day._

"They just aren't...ready for some change in the company." Tony told her. "I want one thing, they don't. Simple as that."

Rebecca folded her arms. "This is what I'm talking about. This 'change'. Everyone seems to know what this is about but _me_." she seemed frustrated. "I don't want you to feel forced into telling me everything, because I get that things are different now, you don't have to do that. That's not the point though, I just want to know why everyone seems to know you better than I do lately, even with all the secrets." she stopped, looking at the ground, slightly ashamed that she was angry at her dad when he had only just returned home.

Tony shook his head. "I know it seems like that, but you gotta-"

"Trust you?" Rebecca asked, cutting in. "Because I do dad, I trust you more than _anyone_. But obviously that's not how it works both ways." she shrugged. "I'm not a kid anymore dad, you don't have to treat me like one."

Rebecca turned to walk away, a headache making its way to her from all of her frustration, but Tony stopped her.

"Bec, wait!" he called out. "I'm sorry, okay? I don't mean to do this." he waited for her to turn back to him. "The whole time I was gone...all I could think about was you when you were younger, and how those were the only memories I'd have with you, I thought I wasn't coming back. But, ever since I got back, I can't stop seeing you as my little girl. It scared me so much, the thought of not seeing you again, not watching you grow up, and I can't help but shelter you from everything. I know you're not a kid anymore, believe me I know, but you're still my little girl. And I'm sorry that I don't tell you as much as I should, but it's not easy..."

A wave of guilt crashed over Rebecca, hearing her dad's words. He was worrying about her. That's all he had been doing since he got back, and it was taking its toll. Rebecca walked over to her dad and put her arms around him, just as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm sorry dad." she told him quietly, taking comfort in his arms.

"Don't be." Tony shook his head and he leant on top of hers. "You have nothing to be sorry for." Tony felt horrible, knowing all of things he was hiding from her, knowing that now he had vowed to tell her the truth, and it was far too late.

* * *

Tony was still mad at himself for lying to Rebecca about the suit. He didn't want to keep things from her, but in his defense, he himself still wasn't entirely sure about why to do with the suit. Tony always assumed he would never get to the stage where this suit would actually make it back to that place and give him his revenge. However, it wasn't exactly revenge he sought, it was justice. For all of the lives that they had taken, for the pain they had caused not only Tony's family, but all of those families, for the fact that for the rest of his life Tony would have to have this electromagnet reactor in his chest, and for Yinsen, who saved Tony's life. He then gave up on anymore development and began looking around his workshop for all of the little things he had started working on before all of this, trying to busy his mind. As he walked around the room, he continued into Rebecca's work area of the room and stopped by the car which was now covered by a sheet. It looked as if it hadn't been touched for weeks, months maybe. Slowly, Tony walked over and lifted the sheet up slightly and peeked at the car. It didn't seem to be in any better condition than before he had left, which prompted him to look further. As the sheet slid off the side of the car, Tony saw the damage that had been done. The windows were no longer there, instead the glass was scattered on the back seat. The metal that surrounded the wheels was bent and broken from obvious force, beaten down as if it were the first day they brought it in to start work. As he inspected further, the dust on the sheet took his interest as well. It had been left for so long, ignored. Even the parts had been left exactly where Rebecca had left them, where he had last seen them. He knew why she did it. She was impulsive, just as he was, and this was the result.

* * *

Rebecca walked out of her room to find the house empty, or so she thought. Pepper had been in and out of the house lately, getting back into her work schedule. Rebecca still felt as though she hadn't thanked Pepper enough, although she had told Pepper many, many times of her appreciation. The fact that Pepper had put her career aside just to make sure that Rebecca was supported for these last few months made Rebecca feel as though she would never be able to tell Pepper how much it meant to her.

"Hey," Tony's voice came from behind her, startling her. "You got a minute?"

"Yeah," Rebecca nodded. "What's up?"

"Uh, it's just about...the car downstairs." he casually informed her. "Just wondering if you want to...start that up again."

Rebecca felt her heart drop, reliving all of her feelings she had when she had resorted to ruining all the work they had done on that car. She couldn't do it anymore, it was full of memories that only brought her pain because of what had happened after it. It was as if she couldn't enjoy that memory anymore because it was the one thing that truly reminded her of that day, since her days were usually spent on the car.

Rebecca shook her head. "Maybe some other time." she tried to change the subject, pouring herself a glass of juice.

"Yeah," Tony nodded, pretending he didn't know about the damage. "No rush, just...if you ever want to do some work, that's all, I mean we promised we'd finish it one day."

As Tony began walking away, Rebecca considered going down to the workshop and surveying the damage on the car. Pepper then walked through the door, carrying a folder of notes and another briefcase that also looked packed.

"Tony!" she called out, and Rebecca could just hear the loud groan that he let out, knowing what he was in for. "That's right, I'm not doing all of this for you."

"But-" Tony began the protest as be walked in.

"Nope." Pepper cut him off with a smile, crushing the folder into his arms and walking off into the living room, waiting for Tony to follow.

Rebecca laughed quietly at Pepper and Tony's childish relationship, enjoying the normality that I gave her, a sense of family in a way. Soon after, she made sure they were both busy as she made her way down to the workshop to have some time to herself and consider the car again.

It was less dusty than she expected, the sheet looked as if it had been shaken to rid the dust that had settled on top over the months. It then came to her attention that her father already seen the damage, already knew what she had done. She swore loudly at her humiliation, she had hoped to somehow fix the problem before he seen. As she took the sheet off, now seeing no use for it covering the car, she noticed a light on over at her dad's desk. She sighed, annoyed, before walking over to turn it off, and she soon noticed it was the computer screen that was lighting up. It was hard to ignore the image that was left on the screen since it was a metal suit that they had been discussing that afternoon. Rebecca admired the suit, taking note of the detail, until she noticed it wasn't a model for a new armor suit, it was the sketch for the first.

"_Mark I_." she whispered, clicking on the file with the same name.

All sorts of sketches came up, all showing the same plans for the same suit. Mark I, whatever that was, was obviously a suit of armor. Completely covered in metal, and a helmet, and defenses. Her mouth fell open when reading of the fire that was to be launched from the arms, and the thrusters at he bottom which enabled flight. It was intriguing, reading of all the development of the suit. However, as she read on, she discovered it was a previous endeavor. She read on to _Mark I suit evaluation and durability_ all the way up until _Upgrades and attachments._ This wasn't just a plan for a suit that Ton was working on, it was the start of something huge, and now she had found that he had already made one of these before. All the information was there before her, telling her everything she needed to know. Then, still curious, she continued to the next file, Mark II.

"_Oh my god_."

**Sorry this is a bit of a slow chapter, it might be a bit boring. I really want to get to Tony revealing all of this suit business to Rebecca, but I didn't want to rush it and make it seem really unconvincing, so sorry if this was a bit slow. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the update and I promise next chapter will get to a lot more. Thank you for the reviews! If you have any comments or anything, leave a review, it lets me know if you guys are enjoying the direction I'm taking the story or enjoying the story in general, and if it's still interesting. I'd hate to disappoint :(**


	10. Chapter 10

The Mark II file held all of the plans she had seen earlier, but having already seen the Mark I suit, she was seeing all of the similarities. The basic layout for the suit was the same, except Mark II had much more advanced upgrades and attachments. Flight stabilizers, thrust capacitors, scanning and aiming technology within the helmet and inbuilt weapons. It was as if Tony was designing some kind of war suit, but what he intended on using it for was what caught Rebecca's attention. As she looked over both Mark I and II again, she felt stupid for not noticing this detail earlier. In the chest piece of each suit was the same circle of light that was in Tony's chest. This must of been why he needed the arc reactor technology. Rebecca added up all the information she had, piecing together the puzzle going on in her mind. The Mark I suit had the same chest piece as Mark II which only confused Rebecca even more. She was sure none of these files existed before Tony was taken, she had searched them herself for some sort of clue in finding him, so that meant the Mark I suit was built after his captivity since that's when Tony had the electromagnet in his chest. It was all so confusing, Rebecca ran her hands through her hair, leaning her head back onto he chair. Tony had only been home for a few days, there was no way he could have built the Mark I suit in such a small amount of time. Even if he did, where would it be? There were so many things that Rebecca needed answering, even after her talk with her dad that same day, she knew he was hiding something from her. Obviously, since she had found out for herself. He had never spoken about these suits of armor before, never even considered them, so why now? Instead of going to find her dad and demand answers, she spent the next hour or more reading more about the suit and figuring out all of the information for herself.

* * *

It was a beautiful day in California the next morning. Rebecca had spent most of her night still reading up on the suits and piecing all of the information together, unsure of whether confronting her father was the best idea just yet. Pepper and Tony were in the kitchen when she walked out, obviously having slept in. She knew Pepper wouldn't have a problem with her sleeping a few extra hours in the morning considering her sleeping troubles from the last few months.

"I'm going to see Rhodey today, you gonna be okay here?" Tony asked as Rebecca sat on the couch in the living room, watching the news reports. It had turned into a habit for her.

"I'll be fine." she answered, eyes still glued to the television. She wasn't sure herself if she was genuinely interested in the news report, or was avoiding her father. "Why, is something wrong?"

"No, no. Uh, just got some things to catch up on that's all. I might be a while..." he waited her for to respond.

Rebecca just nodded her head as he spoke, knowing there was more to it than he was letting on. "Okay then."

Tony waited for her to continue, but that was all she said. Normally she would want to go with him to see Rhodey since she enjoyed criticizing what he thought was 'powerful technology', something she had picked up from Tony. He didn't push the issue though, on this one occasion he was actually glad she decided not to go, there was something he needed to ask Rhodey, and he hadn't told Rebecca about the suits yet.

Not long after Tony left, Rebecca made her way back downstairs to the workshop to look even further on the suits. There was only a certain amount she could study last night while worrying her dad would find out, but now that he was gone, she was free to search through the files. There was a slight feeling of guilt as she knew she was betraying her dad's trust, but she needed to know, the idea had consumed her.

"Jarvis, the Mark I and II." she requested as she lowered the lights, preparing to study the hologram sketches and plans.

The files weren't protected by a password, and even if they were, Rebecca knew how to get past those sort of barricades. She had dealt with Jarvis for years, she knew all of the right things to use to her advantage and she had memorized most of the necessary passwords. The Mark I suit was soon up in front of her, and she studied the chest piece closely for confirmation that it was actually made and it was after the three month captivity. What seemed to confuse her was the fact that there were no plans for the Mark I suit, it had come out of nowhere. Whereas the Mark II suit was going through considerable plans and production. It had to be, it was the only option. He had built it while in captivity. She knew that the man her dad spoke of, Yinsen, was a very intelligent man, this may have been his possible work. Or it may have been collaborative. There were too many things to focus on, but nevertheless, she continued studying, making sure she wasn't interrupted.

* * *

A few hours later, Pepper arrived back at the house to finish off some of the business Tony hadn't got around to taking care of. Rebecca, luckily, had finished looking through the files, after copying them onto a drive so she could view them on her laptop later, as Pepper made her way down to the workshop. Rebecca was standing over by her work area in the room, looking over the old car in front of her.

"You getting back into all this again?" Pepper asked when she walked over beside her. Rebecca shrugged her shoulders, unsure. "I think it'll be good for you."

"Yeah...I guess, I don't know if I want to...yet." Rebecca sighed.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Pepper asked with a concerned look. "And don't say nothing. I think I'm entitled to say I know you better than that now." she tried to get a smile out of Rebecca, and Rebecca relented, giving a small grin.

"I don't know..." Rebecca let her arms fall to her side. "I think...do _you_ think..." she was struggling to make a sentence, or a question.

"It's your dad isn't it?" Pepper asked, although she was sure of the answer. "And don't worry, I've noticed his secretive behavior lately." Rebecca looked up at Pepper, wondering how much she knew.

"What's going on?" Rebecca questioned. "Why...I'm not used to it. I'm not used to him hiding things from me."

Pepper put a hand on Rebecca's shoulder as she had done many,many times before in an effort to comfort her. "You're the most important thing in the world to him, you know that, _everyone_ knows that. So when he hides something from someone like you, then it's obvious that there's a reason behind it." Pepper stated. "Time. That's all he needs, just a little time. I'm not saying he needs to get himself together or anything, I don't believe he's lost his mind at all. I just think he needs time, simple as that, to do whatever he needs to do."

* * *

Tony walked through the door later on that evening, just on dark, and was carrying a bag of take out food. As he sat the bag down in the kitchen bench, he found a note from Pepper explaining she had gone home and left him a small list of things she needed him to do before tomorrow as she had done more than her fair share. Another layer of guilt on Tony was the way he felt he treated Pepper. She put everything on the line for his daughter, and for years she had been doing to same for him. She was so much more than just an assistant to him. Tony made a mental note to make sure he did actually finish all of reminders on the list for her before peaking into the living room. Rebecca was sprawled out across the lounge, her eyes closed as the television was on low, showing some comedy movie.

"Hey," he nudged her softly, just enough to shake her from drifting off. Luckily, she wasn't actually asleep yet. "Hungry?"

Rebecca yawned before sitting up on the couch, accepting the container of Chinese food. "We really need to work on our diet." she shook her head as she remembered they had eaten take out food for the past few days. "This can't be good."

Tony agreed, and they sat quietly eating as the movie on tv continued. A few laughs here and there were all that was heard from both of them for a long time after they had finished eating. Rebecca thought of asking him about his day, what he was talking to Rhodey about, but she kept to herself, remembering Pepper's words. Tony, on the other hand, was shocked that Rebecca didn't comment on his late arrival back home, especially since for the last few days she was almost attached to him at the hip. There was something she wasn't telling him, not that he could blame her after everything he was hiding from her as well. For the rest of the night they sat quietly watching the movie, both knowing that the other had something to say, but each remaining silent.

* * *

The next few days went by the same. Each day Tony would moderate between working in the workshop, working with Pepper on the business he needed to take care of, and spending time with Rebecca. At the same time as Tony was working in downstairs, Rebecca would be monitoring all of the new information being added to the Mark II folder that involved upgrades and production. She was sure her dad would have known by now that she had the files, and Jarvis would have no problem telling him, but somehow he didn't notice, too busy with the plans. When Tony would swap his activities and go with Pepper, Rebecca would go down to the workshop and work on her own projects, getting back into things before she made a design whether or not to begin working on the car once again. It wasn't long before one of the company dinners were held. Pepper, Tony and Rebecca were all going as to show their support and dedication to the company since the injunction had been filed against Tony. It wasn't something that Rebecca looked forward to, since all of the company's families were attending as well, but her stress was building lately and there had been many close calls where she almost confronted her dad about the suits.

"You're kidding me." Rebecca looked at her reflection in her bedroom mirror, Pepper standing next to her. She was wearing a cute black dress with lace covering her chest, a vintage style dress that Pepper had chosen and apparently way to 'girly' for Rebecca's taste. "I look like a..."

"You look like a sixteen year old girl whose wearing a dress." Pepper simply stated, smiling to herself at Rebecca's shock. "Don't be so dramatic, you look very mature, and beautiful."

Rebecca gave her reflection a disgusted look. "I don't know what sixteen year old you're looking at."

"Stop being so hard on yourself!" Pepper scolded. "You need to have some fun tonight."

"I don't even _want_ to go." she sighed. "I hate these things. And now all these people's kids are going to be there too."

Pepper rolled her eyes. "Oh teenage angst, I sure don't miss that." she began walking to the door.

Rebecca looked up at her. "Angst? What angst? How am I angst-_y_? I'm not a drama queen Pepper, I just really just don't want to go."

She could hear Pepper talking to her dad outside of her room, Pepper still laughing as she explained Rebecca's reaction to the dress.

"You look very handsome." Pepper complimented Tony, adjusting his tie for him. This would be his first night out in a long time, and she worried it would overwhelm him, but this was Tony Stark she was talking about. The life of the party, the attention of the party, there was no way that he couldn't handle a dinner party.

"And you look very beautiful Miss. Potts." Tony grinned. They shared a moment of silence together as they stood in the hall, both admiring each other. They shared many moments like this, neither knowing what to say or what to do, but both thinking the same thing.

"Okay," Rebecca walked out of her room with slight heels on, hair done and some makeup, although an unimpressed look on her face. "Im ready."

* * *

Happy pulled the car into the entrance to a plaza where the company dinner was being held. As expected, there were manyo cameras and reporters all waiting for the arrival of Tony Stark. By now, the public was aware of Tony's situation within the board and were all eager to get some sort of response from him. Tony stepped out of the car first, after Happy had opened his door, and he held his hand out for Rebecca to grab. The flashes from the cameras were almost blinding as they made their way across the path to the doors. Tony slowed his pace to make sure Pepper was close behind and not being hassled by the reporters. They all held their microphones close to Tony as they threw their questions at him, unsuccessfully getting a response, which was unusual as Tony always had a something smart to say to them while ignoring their questions.

"Tony, has the board taken into consideration your current well being?" one woman asked.

"One thing you need to know," Tony finally spoke as they approached the doors, pretending to make a sad face to them. "Oh no, another time then?" he waved to them as he was ushered through the doors.

When they finally made it inside, Obadiah was in view as he mingled with the guests and families of the members. Had hadn't noticed Tony's arrival as of yet, and Tony took advantage by rushing them off to the other side of the room.

"Tony! Tony, Tony, Tony!" an unfamiliar man held his arms out to Tony, welcoming him.

"Yeah, that's me." Tony put on an excited expression.

The man and Tony talked for a short while before Tony apologized and guided Rebecca over away from the man. He should get used to idea of people he didn't know coming up to him, after all, it would be endless all night. Pepper was soon taken away by one of her nicer acquaintances within the company to meet their family and Tony watched as she walked away, his expression giving away his adoration of her. The night was going slow, and they hadn't even had dinner yet.

"Let's go get some air or something, get away from these people." Tony walked them to the balcony.

For a moment, Rebecca was actually worried that her dad wasn't coping well with the overwhelming attention he was getting, but she knew he could handle it, he always did.

"You okay?" she asked him when they stepped outside into the cool night air. "Dad?"

Tony took a deep breath. "Yeah, I'm fine." he smiled, resting his arms on the railing. "These parties always annoy me, just not in the mood."

Rebecca let out a small laugh. "And I just _love_ them." she spoke with obvious sarcasm.

They were quiet for a while, enjoying the look of the city in the night, before Tony spoke.

"I think...tomorrow, I could show you something I've been working on." Rebecca nodded her head, interested in his idea. "It's nothing major, just a more advanced tracking device."

Rebecca continued nodding, and she could feel the annoyance inside her. It had been building for days, reaching boiling point, and when she finally thought Tony was going to tell her about them it all took a turn. How long did he think he could keep the secret? More importantly, what did be even plan on doing with them once he managed to make them? Rebecca stood by the railing quietly, offering nothing to the conversation until she decided to just let go and come out with it.

"You know, after our talk the other day, I thought we might have been done with all of the lying and hiding secrets." she turned to look at her dad, who was looking down at the streets below before he met her gaze. "I don't ask for much, in fact I don't ask anything from you, especially since I had to go three months not even knowing if you were alive." Tony noticed the intensity in her voice and watched as she took a brief pause, taking a few breaths. "I know about the suits, dad. I know about everything."

Tony looked back at her with genuine worry and shock on his face. He hadn't planned on her finding out like this, he hadn't planned on her finding out at all, he wanted to tell her for himself, when the time was right. Instead, he had created a situation he didn't either of them to be in. There was no chance for Tony to speak, to explain, as footsteps approached behind them.

"Tony! It's good to see you, alive and well I see." the man extended his arm to Tony. "There's so much to catch up on!" the man seemed excited as he shook Tony's hand eagerly.

The man was familiar, an acquaintance of Tony's. Rebecca remembered seeing him many times at company functions and parties like these, but she couldn't remember his name. The only thing she could remember of the man was his persistent son, Lucas.

"Hey, haven't seen you in a long time." Lucas walked over to her as their dads spoke. "Where have you been?"

Rebecca gave him a weird look. "Uh...my dad kind of got kidnapped, so I haven't been very social." she told him.

"Oh, no, of course not. I mean, the last one of these things...you weren't here." he clarified.

"Oh, yeah, I was finishing a..a degree course." she told him quietly. She still felt incredibly self conscious about her achievements at such a young age.

Lucas was about to continue speaking before his dad interrupted him, laying and hand on his shoulder.

"Lucas, I'm going to get me and Tony a drink, you'll be okay around here." his dad didn't seem to be asking a question rather than telling his son.

"Oh, it's fine," Tony brushed of the offer, waving his hands. "I was just having a conversation with my daughter actually, so-"

"No, no," Rebecca stopped him. "It's fine, we can talk anytime, right?" she looked at her dad. "I'm okay on my own."

"What a lovely daughter you've got!" the man praised, and Rebecca gave him a light smile. "Shall we?" he gestured for Tony to walk with him.

Tony gave an apologetic look to his daughter, who only looked blankly back at him, before he followed the man back inside. There was no awkward silence between Lucas and Rebecca, who were the only ones now left on the balcony. Rebecca didn't know him too well, she just remembered him talking with her at a few of these parties before.

"How's your dad?" Lucas asked when he joined her by the railing. He was a nice young man, although he shared the same arrogance as his father.

Rebecca shrugged her shoulders in response. "For a man who was held captive by terrorists, he's doing pretty well."

Lucas nodded. "Yeah, that's tough."

Rebecca looked out at the city once again, admiring the lights that beamed out of the buildings. The people walking the streets beneath, the cars flowing on the roads, the cool night air. Although she was looking at one of the most beautiful sights in the city, she couldn't take her mind off what she had done, and what she had just caused between her and her father.

**Hope this chapter didn't rush through things or drag on for you guys! I had a lot I wanted to throw into this chapter. Oh, and don't confuse this party with the same one in the Iron Man film, that will be happening later on in the story still. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and aren't losing interest in the story.** **I appreciate the reviews, let's me know how I'm going with the story! Thanks. **


	11. Chapter 11

Rebecca and Lucas stayed on the balcony for a while longer after their fathers had left, watching the city lights and talking. It was only when they heard toasts being held inside that they realized they had been standing out there for quite some time. They walked inside to the party and maneuvered their way around the mass of people, making their way to a table. Tony watched intently from a distance before Pepper made her way to his side.

"Stop staring at them." she laughed, nudging him on the shoulder. Tony then turned away, trying to cover the fact he was staring in the first place.

"I'm not." he shrugged, sipping his glass of scotch. "I'm just bored." Pepper nodded, amused at his cover up. Although he tried not to look due to Pepper's presence, his eyes kept flicking back over to them, causing Pepper to roll her eyes. "What? I just don't trust the kid."

Pepper raised her eyebrow. "Do you even know him?" she questioned, knowing very well that Tony would be making a judgement.

"I know his father," Tony countered. "And if he's anything like him, then I don't trust him." Tony looked back over to his daughter and the boy, keeping an eye on him.

Pepper looped her arm through his and lead him away from his viewing position. "Come on, go find someone to talk to." She could hear Tony groan at the mention of talking to people, since that's all he had been doing all night. Everyone wanted to talk to him, even people he'd never met before, but assumed he knew somehow.

* * *

Rebecca and Lucas were talking about all of the guests they seen walking around the room. All of the money hungry members and their children, all dressed formally and following their parents around like puppies. There weren't as many children as Rebecca thought there would be, which was relieving. At previous company get-togethers, Lucas always managed to get on Rebecca's nerves, with all of his questions and following her around, but Rebecca knew his motive. His father was keen to somehow become closer to Tony Stark in hopes he would be entitled to more within the company, and he used his son to his advantage.

"Well, this is pretty boring." Rebecca sighed when they had ceased talking for a while. Lucas nodded I'm agreement, but didn't speak. Rebecca looked around the room, spotting her father over by the bar, talking with a few business men and Pepper talking to some other close by.

"Wanna go back outside? Less people out there." Lucas suggested, and Rebeca nodded. They walked around the back way as to avoid the crowd of people, and we're greeted by a few of the company members.

"Ah, the young Stark!" Another unfamiliar man referred to Rebecca, extending an arm out to greet her. "Wonderful to see you again!" the man spoke as if they knew each other.

"Yeah...nice to see you again too." Rebecca smiled, accepting the man's hand shake before departing from him. "Who was that?" she asked Lucas.

He seemed offended that she didn't know. "Him? He's one of the head board members. My father's good friends with him." he explained. Rebecca walked by his side as they continued to the balcony doors, planning on avoiding the party for the rest of the night.

* * *

Tony finally got away from the swarm of people who were crowded around him long enough to get another drink from the bar. Despite his efforts, the alcohol was failing to help him relax.

"Didn't think you were showing up tonight." Obadiah's voice came from beside him.

Tony took a sip of his drink. "Why? Because everyone here basically hates me now?" he asked with a bored tone. "Although they love pretending not to."

"Don't be so dramatic, no one hates you." Obadiah rolled his eyes. "They're just giving you some time."

"Right, because after spending three months in a cave I've lost my mind completely." Tony's sarcasm was bitterly directed at Obadiah. He was still deeply annoyed at Obadiah for thinking he was crazy, thinking he needed help.

"Don't take all of this personally. You know the media, they twist everything. The company, in a way, is just looking out for you." Obadiah explained.

Tony looked at him with disbelief. "Don't take it personally? How can I not take this personally? The entire company thinks I've lost my mind and am running it to the ground." he shook his head at Obadiah. "If you'll excuse me."

Pepper was standing around by herself after getting another drink, only her third for the night. She had talking to people all night, she barely had a chance to just relax and have a drink to herself. When she saw Tony approaching, she assumed he was about to start complaining about all of the people who had been following him around all night.

"Hey, you were warned." Pepper defended before he even spoke. "They swarm."

Tony rolled his eyes and gave a slight chuckle before he began speaking. "Actually, do you know where Bec is? I think we'll go home, not really in the mood to humor all these people for the rest of the night." he told her.

Pepper nodded understandingly. She suspected he might have trouble adjusting back into his lifestyle so quickly, especially when there were so many people questioning him about his captivity and forcing him to relive the memories.

"Yeah, sure, I'll go get Happy." Pepper sat down her drink on the bench. "I think I seen her with that boy, walking around...but that was way earlier on."

Tony shook his head. "I'll find her."

The whole room was full of people, and it was hard to find one particular person within the sea of business people. Eventually, Tony had managed to make his way through the crowd, but Rebecca was still out of sight. People were still coming up to him and trying to engage in conversation, but he casually slipped by. Giving up on the room, he headed out to the balcony where he saw his daughter sitting on the chair alone.

"Hey," he walked slowly over to her, unsure of whether or not she was angry at him. "Have you been out here _all_ night?" he asked, noticing the chill in the air.

"Huh?" she looked over to him, only just noticing his presence. "Oh...hey, dad." she acknowledged him.

Tony raised an eyebrow at her, before his eyes caught onto the fact that there were empty glasses sitting on the table next to her, clearly not all hers judging by the amount there.

"Have you been drinking?" he asked, although he was sure of the answer. "Bec? Hey!" he knelt beside her, trying to get a response. When she opened her eyes, Tony put his hand to her forehead and made sure she was okay. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked with a firm voice.

Rebecca turned her body in the chair and got into a comfortable position as if to go to sleep. She had obviously had too much, and Tony's main focus was getting her back home safely now. He slid his arms under her back and legs, carefully pulling her into his arms and carrying her to the door.

"Whoa!" Lucas appeared at the door with another tray of drinks, terrified at the unexpected contact with Tony. "Uh, I-I was..." he stuttered, looking back and forth between Tony, his unconscious daughter in his arms and the tray of alcohol in his hands, unable to think of a plausible excuse.

Tony knew he should have trusted his gut instinct, he knew this boy was trouble. He knew his father was using him to get to Rebecca, trying to push his way closer to gaining Tony's trust and whatever privileges he thought came with it.

"Save it, kid." Tony pushed past him enough to get out of the doorway. "Don't even think about coming anywhere near my daughter again, you got it?" Tony raised his voice, his anger clear and threatening, leaving Lucas too stunned to respond. "Hey! Is that clear enough for you?" he yelled.

Lucas nodded his head fast, making her Tony knew he understood. "Y-yes, M-Mr. Stark." he felt his hands tremble beneath the tray.

Tony gave him an icy glare before walking past, making his way to the back entrance of the building to meet Happy and Pepper. Rebecca was completely out, her face nestled into Tony's chest.

Pepper saw him approaching and immediately ran to him. "Oh my god, what happened?" she panicked.

"She's okay," Tony looked at Pepper seriously, knowing how worried she was. "Completely wasted though. You know teenagers." he sat Rebecca in the back seat carefully, making sure she was secure and comfortable before taking a seat next to her.

Pepper climbed into the opposite seat and pushed the hair away from Rebecca's nose. "Where was she? I didn't see her take anything." Pepper asked.

"Out on the balcony, with that boy. I swear the next time I see him or his father...I'm gonna-" Tony couldn't find words through his anger.

"Hey, hey, calm down." Pepper soothed. "Let's just...wait until morning, then we'll sort everything out okay? Just let her sleep it off, we'll deal with it in the morning." Pepper suggested.

Tony nodded, although he knew that talking about Rebecca's teenage drinking wouldn't be the topic being discussed in the morning. Instead, he would have to deal with the consequences of his lies. The fact that Rebecca had found out about the suits on her own rather than being told by Tony. Both situations considered, the following morning was not one to look forward to.

* * *

Rebecca awoke to a darkened room, and it took a few seconds for her to register that it was in fact her room, the only light coming from the cracks beneath her door and windows. She felt...filthy. She had slept in the same dress she wore the night before, makeup still on and hair oily from the product she had used. At least her shoes were off, that was her only relief. Just as she swung her legs off the bed, her door flew open.

"Oh, so you _are_ awake." Pepper peaked inside the room. "Just making sure you're okay."

Rebecca ran her fingers through her course hair. "Mm, I'm fine." she shrugged. Actually, she felt like sleeping for a few more hours but taking a long, hot shower at the same time. It was a tough decision. "I think I'll go shower."

Pepper nodded, beginning to close the door. "Breakfast will be on the table when you're done, and an extra strong coffee."

Rebecca gave a slight grin. "Thanks Pepper."

Rebeca staggered into the bathroom and took the dress off, relieved. She stepped into the shower and let the hot water relax her, take away all the stress, the pain. She didn't know why she had drank so much with Lucas, he just kept handing them to her though. It was not his fault though, it was her choice to drink, but she was angry, and frustrated, alcohol probably wasn't the best idea. She remembered telling Lucas she was angry at her dad, but she was still careful not to mention why. She didn't trust him at all, but she enjoyed being with someone else for a change.

* * *

In the kitchen, just as Pepper said, breakfast was waiting for Rebecca. The plate was full, food almost falling off the sides. Pepper was secretly making sure Rebecca didn't get a delayed hangover and throw up, so she made sure she had a big breakfast. The first thing Rebecca did though was take a long sip of her coffee. It wasn't long after she sat down that Tony walked into the kitchen, Pepper leaving as to give them space. They didn't say anything to each other, Rebecca continued eating her breakfast and Tony made himself a coffee. It was an awkward silence, unlike the many other silences they sat through. Tony continued making his coffee silently, no attempt at conversation, which made Rebecca even more angrier than if he was actually giving her a lecture.

"You're mad at me, I get it." Rebecca groaned, putting her fork down onto the table with force. "Whatever lecture you've got, just spit it out." Rebecca didn't mean for her words to come out so bitterly, but it wasn't exactly her best morning. She sighed, putting her head into her hands to ease the incoming headache.

Tony chuckled at Rebecca's annoyance. "Hey, you chose to drink, live with the consequences." he shrugged. I wasn't as if he wasn't a rebellious teenager when he was younger, he was Tony Stark. He wasn't a big fan of the parenting method of lecturing or yelling, he always took a cooler approach, letting Rebecca learn for herself.

Rebecca picked her fork up again and resumed eating, knowing the food would make her feel a lot better. Her stomach felt completely empty even though she had eaten half of the food on her plate. Tony was trying to think of a way to move into the conversation about the suits, trying to get that conversation out of the way, but he didn't know how to start.

"I need to sleep." Rebecca picked up her coffee and left the kitchen before Tony could begin talking. He thought she might have forgotten, given the events, but even as she walked away she was thinking about the same thing.

* * *

The air conditioner was cool on Rebecca's skin as she awoke for the second time that day, this time at four in the afternoon. She had slept off her hangover, feeling much better than before. It was as if she had imagined being awake that morning, as if it was all a dream, the breakfast and talking to her dad. She needed to talk to him, there was so many things that needed to be discussed now. The house was empty when she walked out of her room, no background noise of the television, no chatter of Pepper on the phone and no sign of her dad. No wonder she had slept so long, the house was deserted. Before she began wondering where everyone was, she decided to check the workshop, and that's exactly where Tony was. She didn't walk through the door though, instead she observed.

"Okay, we're gonna start with 10% thrust capacity. In three..." Tony began counting down, filming his attempt. "Two...one!" Tony was thrown back into the wall behind him, a loud smack as his body collided with the cement walls.

Rebecca hurried to the door and input her password, raving over to her dad who was now on the ground covered in fire extinguisher. He didn't seem injured, he was just surprised to see Rebecca there.

"Dad! Oh my god, are you okay?" Rebecca asked him, although she was staring at the metal attachments he wore in his legs. They were the exact model of the sketches she had seen in the files. "These are the thrust capacitors, aren't they?"

Tony lifted himself off of the ground, sitting upright. "Yeah, they're a little stronger than I thought." he concluded. "I thought it might be easier explaining all of this to you in person, rather than looking through files." he told her as she studied the thrust capacitors again, mesmerized by the technology.

Rebecca looked back up at her dad. "Why didn't you just tell me? That's all I want to know."

Tony had spent the past few hours showing Rebecca everything he could about the suits after explaining why he couldn't tell her to begin with. The conversation was full of yelling and then understanding, but eventually he accepted all of his apologies, feeling a bit guilty afterwards when she understood why he felt he couldn't tell her. The part of the conversation where Tony had to reveal his intentions with the suit to her was a heated one, which involved the most yelling and tantrums, but it had eventually settled. Rebecca knew her dad, and when he had a motivation for an idea, there was no talking him out of it. The whole thing was to be kept secret, only Tony and Rebeca knowing about the suits, and occasionally Pepper when she walked down and saw him working on it. It was exciting to Rebecca, the fact that one of these suits even existed. When she studied the components of the suit she could separate sections and break them down in her head, discovering how they worked. There was a part of her that worried, as usual, about the use of the suit and the harm that could be done, it was seriously dangerous, but for the first time in a long time they were working together on something they were both passionate about.

"Are you okay?" Tony asked. "You haven't said anything." he observed as she shook herself out of her daze.

"Huh?" she looked up at her dad. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." she blinked a few times, pulling her thoughts back together. "It's just a lot to take in."

Tony nodded. "I know. And I'm not forcing you to be directly involved in this-"

"I just need some time to think...about all of this, that's all. Just to see things clearly, time to think." she explained, not wanting to disappoint or promise him anything.

Tony nodded. "Yeah, no, understandable." he watched as she stood up and walked toward the door.

"Thank you..." she turned back to him. "For telling me all of this, it means a lot to me dad."

Tony smiled to himself as she walked out of the room, feeling a weight lifted from him as the guilt subsided. Now, all that was left was worry that Rebecca was going to either freak out about all of this or do something stupid.

* * *

After her long nap in the afternoon, it wasn't exactly easy for Rebecca to fall asleep that night. Instead she had alternated from eating ice cream and watching movies, to sprawling out on the living room couch and watching late night television, home shopping, in order to fall asleep. The bad late night television brought back the same feeling as she had when Tony was missing, taking her back to the nights when she would spend hours watching these programs to pass the time until morning. It soon hit around 2am and Rebecca was still wide awake. Before she could even register what she was doing, her feet had taken her down to the workshop door.


	12. Chapter 12

Rebecca didn't need to look far before she found the attachments for the suit, studying them further now that she could finally see them up close, not just the sketches. Everything was so advanced, it almost seemed unreal how it managed to work. She continued studying all of the components of the suit attachments, making herself familiar with everything. It surprised her when she looked at the clock and discovered it was now 4am. By that time, she had already made a mental note of the contributions she could suggest, making her decision to help final.

* * *

Rebecca awoke late that morning, having caught up on her sleep she had failed to get the night before. Ever since her dad had returned home, she had slipped back into her old sleeping habits that mirrored any other teenager's, and she had stopped taking the medication she had been prescribed, considering herself over all of the stress she was suffering. Pepper was sitting quietly in the living room as Rebecca walked out.

"Hey, you got a minute?" Pepper asked, a pleasant smile on her face. In her lap sat her planner, the same file he had carried around for years while working for Tony.

Rebecca walked over and took a seat on the opposite couch. "This isn't...a lecture is it?" she asked cautiously. Pepper was like the authoritarian within their somewhat family, providing advice and subtle discipline when she felt it was needed, but after Rebecca had moved on from the early teen years, Pepper backed off.

"Of course not." Pepper shook her head. "But I do think what you did was incredibly stupid." she added seriously before opening her planner. "Listen, you know the fundraiser that Stark Industries has every year, I was wondering if you're interested in attending_ this_ year. I know you hated it last year but-"

"Pepper!" Rebecca groaned, throwing her head back onto the couch cushions dramatically. "You know I hate the fundraiser!"

"Bec, it's _one_ night." Pepper encouraged.

"But I went to the company party the other night, doesn't that count?" she whined.

"No, this is a public event. There'll be publicists, reporters, media coverage, interviews." Pepper listed.

"And you think _that_ will encourage me to go?" Rebecca raised her eyebrow.

"I think it'll be extremely good for the company. This will be your first public company function since all of the drama. I know you don't like these things, and I know the reporters are nosy and annoying, but the public wants to know you're committed to the company after all that happened when your dad...wasn't here." Pepper explained. "I_ know_ it's a lot to ask, but we need this, the company does. For me, please?"

Rebecca basically had no choice now. There was no way she would say no to doing something for Pepper, especially when it wasn't even for her, it was for the company. "Fine, I'll go. And don't worry, I won't drink this time."

Pepper grinned widely. "Thank you." Rebecca returned the gesture before heading back to the kitchen in search of food. "Oh...and I'll pick up a dress for you too." Pepper laughed to herself as she could hear Rebecca's groans from the kitchen.

* * *

The workshop was noisy that afternoon as Rebecca was walking past the stairs, stopping to try and pinpoint the noises. She knew it was coming from the workshop, but couldn't figure out what it was. Curious, she made her way down the stairs quietly, although nothing could be heard over the sounds. Through the glass doors she could see Tony hovering above the ground with the use of the flight stabilizers that had been attached to the suit legs. It was the first time she had seen them working properly after seeing the power of them through Tony into a wall the previous day.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Tony looked over to her as she walked closer to inspect. "This is only 3% thrust capacity."

Rebecca raised her eyebrows in astonishment. "You got it working." she observed, taking note of the fact that everything was hooked up to the arc reactor within Tony's chest. "It seems..._powerful_."

"It is." he told her, lowering back to the ground to release himself from them. "I got the suit ready to be built, just gotta set it up." Tony walked over and showed her the desk full of attachments that he was ready to adjust together.

"Whoa...seriously?" Rebecca couldn't believe amount of attachments going into the suit, all adding up.

"Even took in mind your suggestions." Tony informed her proudly.

"What? Really?" she asked, grinning at the fact that in some way she had helped. Her main suggestions involved the placement of the attachments within the suit to create sustainability of the materials and ensure they had the same amount of power being supplied to each component to enhance capability when I'm flight or combat, not that she wanted to even consider to suit during combat, although it would have the considerable edge.

"I thought you might want to..." Tony gestured toward the materials and the tools.

Rebecca soon grasped what he was asking. "You want _me_ to do it?" she questioned, watching as Tony nodded confidently. "Don't you want to do it? You did design everything." she pointed out.

"No ones knows this stuff as well as you...well, I do," Tony shrugged. "...but I like your vision. I could really use your help."

Rebecca smiled happily, confident in herself now that her dad was putting his trust into her with the suit. Before it was all secrets, and now he was ready to let her help develop the entire thing. She often doubted herself when it came to her father's opinion on her. Sure, she was above the genius level intellect at the young age of sixteen and had the early graduate certificates and degrees to prove it, but in terms of career paths and directions, she was lost. It was comforting to know that her dad still held the same belief and pride in her, it was a reward in itself that he trusted her when it came to such things, because she knew that he wouldn't have asked anyone else to assist him in this project, or any of his projects, which only made Rebecca that much more grateful to have a father like Tony.

* * *

Pepper made her way down to the workshop after the house had been empty for hours, giving up on the hope that either one of them would resurface from whatever they were working on. The music had reached full volume once again, filling the room with defeating blasts from the speakers. It had been a while since Pepper had to fumble with the volume adjusters and turn the music down, there had been little to no music in the workshop for months. Looking over to Rebecca and Tony working together while mouthing the words to the song took Pepper back to the days when Tony would spend hours down here teaching Rebecca everything she now knew. When Pepper only just began turning the volume down, both Rebecca and Tony's heads whipped up and looked over to her with disappointed looks.

"That was a good song!" Rebecca complained, wiping the loose strands of hair from her face, smearing whatever grease or oil that was on her face.

Pepper rolled her eyes before waking over to them. "You do realize how long you've been down here." she pointed out. She watched silently as they each checked the time, a surprised look on their face. "Exactly. Believe it or not, there was _actually_ work that had to be done today."

Tony sat his tool down and picked up a rag, wiping the black grease from his hands. "Fair point. We'll wrap it up for the night then." he looked over to Rebecca. "Let's go get some food."

Pepper sighed with relief. It was extremely rare that Tony would give up on working on his projects so easily in order to do work for the company. Truthfully, Tony had been feeling quite guilty lately given all that Pepper had done for him and Rebecca and felt he was ignoring her efforts. He knew there was work for him to do, but he was such a procrastinator when it came to company business over his personal projects, however, he would happily do this for Pepper.

"I'm thinking three large pizzas? Extra everything, extra fast." Tony told them as they reached the living room. He took a seat in his usual spot and pulled he file he needed to review into his lap.

"Hungry are we?" Pepper raised her eyebrow at his request for such an amount.

"Well, you're staying for dinner." Tony informed her, giving her no option, not that Pepper ever argued against staying with them. "So that's us three, and I'm guessing Rhodey will be showing up sometime later." he explained.

* * *

Rebecca was finding herself feeling the happiest she had been in a long time that night. She finally had rekindled the bond her and Tony shared with working on projects and spending time together, which lifted her spirits entirely. Pepper had taken the rest of the evening off of her working schedule and ate pizza with them, setting the work talk and any company business aside. Once they were finished with the first pizza, which had so much topping on it they weren't sure they'd make it to the second, Rhodey arrived, just as her father had predicted.

"Why are you guys always eating pizza when I show up?" Rhodey laughed as he discovered the three of them lounging around in the living room.

"Why do you always show up when we're eating pizza?" Tony countered, causing Rebecca and Pepper to chuckle as they held in a mouthful of pizza.

"Coincidence," Rhodey walked over to the box and took a slice. "I know you order more for me anyway."

It was hard to get through the second pizza after all of the conversations they were having. None, however, held any company talk or army talk, which made the evening that much more relaxing. It was as if there was nothing else going on in the world around them, and for once they all felt like their lives were finally returning to normal and nothing had happened in the last few months, like they were picking up where they had left off.

"What have you guys been working on?" Rhodey pointed toward Rebecca and Tony, referring to the grease and oil that was smeared across each of their faces and arms.

Rebecca and Tony exchanged a casual glance before answering. "Just the cars. Keeping them in tune, just a little maintenance." Tony told him easily.

Rhodey looked as though he was thinking about something, his head was tilted slightly. "Oh! The hot rod, I've been meaning to check that out." he looked back up. "See how the engine turned out after you got to it."

Tony grinned. "I'm sure Bec would love to show it off, since she actually did more work than me in that thing." he informed, not ashamed to admit it wasn't all his work.

Rebecca swung her legs off of the couch. "That's if you'll be able to understand what you're looking at, I mean, you're a pilot after all." she quipped cheekily.

Rhodey took a moment to process the insult, his lips tugging into a smile as Tony laughed hysterically while clapping his hands, Pepper holding her hand over her mouth to cover her laughter as well. "Yeah, yeah, whatever." he shrugged his shoulders, still an amused expression on his, following behind as Rebecca speedily made her way down the stairs.

Tony reached over to the box of pizza and grabbed a slice, quickly taking a bite before the immense layer of topping fell to bits. "C'mon, help me finish this box." he pushed the box closer to Pepper's reach.

"Ugh, no way, I am _absolutely_ full." she shook her head, resting back further into the couch. For a moment, the only sound in the living room was Tony finishing the slice of pizza and taking a long breath. "It's been a while since I've seen her in such a good mood."

Tony moved his arm behind his head to act as a rest against the couch as he looked over to Pepper. He always knew of all the sacrifices that Pepper had made in order to be there for Rebecca when he wasn't, he would never forget that, but it often skipped his memory that Pepper was the one person who knew Rebecca maybe even more than he did because of the suffering she had seen.

"I've been meaning to ask, is she- I mean is the whole- is she getting better?" he struggled with his words.

Pepper understood though. "This depression thing...it was only brought on from everything that happened, plus her stress levels, but it's not something that just goes away." she explained. "She still takes medication, she still continues the routine. She's better though, a whole lot better I promise you, she's getting there."

Tony sighed. "I just want her to be okay." he told her. "I want this to all be in the past."

"It will be, Tony. It's happening _now_. Look how happy she is." Pepper sat up, moving closer to him. "_You_ are making it better, because you are such a good father to her. These things take time, and you can't put too much pressure on yourself. You can't blame yourself or hate yourself for not being able to do anything, this is not your fault. Tony, _you_ need to be taken care of too you know." Pepper watched as Tony lifted his face to level with hers, realizing how close they were. It felt like time had slowed down as they silently looked at each other. "I'm...always going to be here for you Tony." Pepper spoke softly, breaking their silence.

Tony's lips tugged into a smile, although his eyes didn't wander from hers. "Yeah...I know." he nodded his head slowly, seeming to be mesmerized by their stare. The moment seemed to go on for minutes, neither of them moving away from their intimate position, their faces close enough to feel each other's breath.

"You wouldn't have a clue!" Rhodey's arguing could be heard from the stairs, approaching quickly as he and Rebecca made their way back to the living room.

Tony and Pepper immediately broke their gaze, backing away from each other and easing back into the couches.

"I bet if I sat in front of those control panels I could tell you what each of their functions are and how vital they are to any craft." Rebecca wagered.

Rhodey shook his head before coming to a conclusion. "Alright, next week I'll take you out to the control room for observation and you can test that theory." he suggested.

"You got a deal." Rebecca hit Rhodey's hand for a high five before taking her seat back on the couch.

* * *

The rest of the night was full of chatter and more food before Rhodey had to leave in order for some training exercise in the morning, which left just Tony, Pepper and Rebecca for the rest of the night. When Pepper had said she should probably leave, Rebecca managed to persuade her to stay by making coffee and popcorn for everyone and putting in a movie. It was peaceful, just what they needed. When it hit the early hours of the morning, Tony carefully woke Rebecca, who had fallen asleep beside him, and guided her back to her room in her tired state.

"I'll see you tomorrow then." Pepper whispered before she stepped toward the hallway.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Tony stopped her. "You're not going home at this hour. Take the guest room, it's practically yours anyway." he suggested.

Pepper considered. "No, no, it's fine."

"You're _staying_ here." Tony insisted. "No further argument."

Pepper relented, changing her direction toward the guest room. Tony was right, it was practically her room given the amount of nights she occupied it. Just as she reached the door, she turned to Tony who was still watching.

"Goodnight Mr. Stark." she grinned, addressing him formally as she had done for years.

Tony returned the smile. "Goodnight Miss. Potts."


	13. Chapter 13

The next few days seemed to pass by quickly as Rebecca and Tony spent most of their time in the workshop working on the suit. All of the attachments had to be compatible with the arc reactor in order for them to function properly, which meant extra work had to be done to each layer of metal that outlined the suit. They each took sections from various parts and worked on them individually before they'd place them together and test them. It was a way that both of them were able double check the effectiveness of the attachments and work quicker, not that there was a specific time limit, but they desperately wanted to get to the testing and configuration.

Tony had tried not to spend all day in the shop, making sure the work Pepper told him he needed to do was done. Ever since the injunction had been filed against him, his whole commitment to the company had been shaken, which caused him to delay any work that needed to be done for them. Although, today would be Pepper's official day off, one that she didn't intend to take for granted. The only days off Pepper took were because of dire emergencies or life-threatening illnesses, but since Tony had less work coming in from the company, se didn't see the harm in taking a day.

"Good morning," Pepper greeted Rebecca as she walked out into the kitchen, having only just woken up.

"Morning," Rebecca mumbled, heading straight toward the coffee machine.

"You have any plans today?" Pepper asked thoughtfully, propping herself up onto a stool at the bench.

Rebecca shrugged her shoulders carelessly. "Same old. Probably do some more down in the work shop." she sipped at her coffee, pleased at the taste.

Pepper took a deep breath. "Well, I was thinking we could go somewhere today. We still need to get you a dress for that fundraiser coming up, and you haven't left this place in days." she suggested.

Rebecca scrunched her nose up. "Dress shopping..." she thought, considering the amount of colors she would have to assert through, styles she would have to search for and all sorts of designs she'd have to try on. "I don't know."

"Oh, come on!" Pepper encouraged. "It'll be fun. Girls day out. We'll have lunch, shop, do anything we want."

Tony then walked into the kitchen with his empty coffee mug, setting it down next on the far end of the bench. "Girls day out?" he looked over suspiciously. "Oh, right, it's your day off." Pepper nodded. "Sounds like a good idea."

Rebecca still seemed to be doubting the whole situation. "I don't know..." she considered again. On one hand she had planned to do some more work in the workshop, even though she'd spend her last few days there, and on the other hand she wanted to spend the day with Pepper. After all that Pepper had done for her there was no way she could deny going out with her for the day. "I guess it'd be fun. Yeah, okay, day out it is." Rebecca gavePepper an assuring grin.

Pepper smiled happily, the excitement obvious. Rebecca knew Pepper rarely took a day off, those few months when she stayed with Rebecca was enough relaxation in her mine, but she deserved a day out.

Rebecca finished off her breakfast that Pepper had insisted she eat, and managed to drink another cup of coffee while Pepper skimmed through her planner. Although it was her day off, she still left notes for a few things Tony needed to do but they weren't too important.

"Okay I'll just shower and get ready, oh and there's just one or two things I need to do before we go but I'll hurry." Rebecca walked back to her room speedily.

Pepper just nodded her head, knowing she had about an hour before Rebecca actually would be ready, but she was used to it by now.

* * *

Rebecca followed Pepper around to a few stores, unaware of just how many dress stores there were in the mall. A few times she took a seat in the store while Pepper rummaged through the clothing racks, trying to find a suitable dress that Rebecca would like.

"What about _you_?" Rebecca questioned when they left one of the stores. "You need a dress too."

Pepper shook her head. "I've had mine for a while now. I treated myself to it for my birthday, from your dad." she explained.

"Huh, you've been prepared for a while." Rebecca commented. "This fundraiser thing must be really important."

"Well, it was meant to be sooner, but then all of that happened. But yes, it's a big deal. It's a chance for the public to see the company is doing good and still supporting the military services and whatnot." Pepper informed her. "Which is why it's important for you to go."

Rebecca sighed. "Yeah, I get it. They wanna make sure I'm committed and blah blah blah."

Pepper laughed. "Basically."

"Dad hasn't mentioned anything about it." Rebecca pointed out.

Pepper looked worried. "Not many people think he's gonna show up, and I'm not even sure if they've invited him, even though it's his own fundraiser. I've avoided the topic." she explained. "The company still doesn't trust him, they want to give him as much time as he needs but honestly, I think they're just trying to run this company themselves. Hopefully after this fundraiser the injunction against him will be invalid and he can go back to work."

Rebecca shook her head in disbelief. It was these sort of things that made her weary of one day being a huge part of the company, or even taking over. After everything that's happened in the past few months, Rebecca discovered the mistrust, dishonesty and greed within the company and it made her dread the fundraiser even more. All of the members coming up to her and asking about what she plans to do or when she plans on being more involved, all hungry for power.

* * *

When they finally took a break during all of their dress shopping, Pepper decided to go to a cafe and have lunch. Rebecca was thrilled, she ha become so bored of looking at dress after dress and trying on heels that she needed to sit down and just relax. So far, Rebecca had convinced Pepper to buy herself some jewelry to go with her dress, much to Pepper's dismay, but it was hard to argue when Rebecca had rushed off to the cash register with her credit card. The cashier looked quite shocked to see the sixteen year old with her own credit card buying expensive jewelry, but Rebecca just grinned, happy to spend money on Pepper.

"Can we just sit here for a few hours?" Rebecca groaned as they took their table.

They soon skimmed the menu and ordered their food, sipping at their drinks as they read through all of the brochures and coupons that were on their table. As Pepper sighed and looked up from her drink, she noticed Rebecca staring at a spa coupon that was offering mother and daughter package deals. It wasn't often that Rebecca spoke of her mother, she had made it clear that she wasn't fond of the woman. Tony had always assured her that he would tell her anything she wanted to know about her mother, but Rebecca never asked. She remembered only small details of her life when her mother was still around, but she didn't even know what she looked like anymore.

"I'm starving, hope this food hurries up." Rebecca threw the coupon aside.

Pepper agreed and went back to sipping at her drink.

* * *

That night Tony was sitting in the living room when Rebecca walked in, drying her hair from the shower.

"Hey, how was the girls day?" he asked. Tony hadn't seen Rebecca since she had come home, he was finishing off the list that Pepper had left him.

"It was good, but I_ never_ want to go to the mall again." she laughed, taking a seat on the end of the couch. As she continued to dry her hair, she noticed how quiet her dad was being. "Dad, what's going on?" she asked.

Tony seemed to be thinking to himself deeply before she got his attention. He gave her a slight smile before the turning to her. "Did you wanna talk about your mom?" he asked directly.

Rebecca seemed taken aback, she certainly wasn't expecting that response. "_What_?" she asked in a shocked tone. "Where did-" Rebecca stopped when she realized he had spoken to Pepper. It was just a silly coupon, it wasn't like she was having some sort of emotional connection. "Why? _Why_ would I want to talk about her?"

Tony sighed. "You've just never asked about her. I don't know...I don't want you to not know about her...but I don't want to make you do anything you don't want to. I don't know how you feel about the whole thing." Tony shook his hands, trying to find the right words.

To be honest, Tony was struggling with the idea of having to explain things to Rebecca. He had always promised that he would, and he stood by that promise, but it was such bad timing. Right now, after everything that had happened and with what was happening, he felt that Rebecca was somehow disappointed in him, like he wasn't being the best father he could be. It made sense, considering Tony's lies and his whole plan to create a suit, no teenager wants to be dragged into that, or treated that way.

Rebecca still felt uncomfortable with the whole idea of talking about her mother, she was basically a stranger, and she knew it would be bringing up all of her dad's past feelings. "I never asked because I don't care." she shrugged.

"I know that's not true." Tony raised his eyebrows at her. "She's your mother...there's gotta be something you wonder about her, something you care about.''

Rebecca shrugged her shoulders again, this time she made her disinterest more noticeable. ''Why should I? She didn't care about me? She left remember.'' her voice was strong and bothered.

Tony looked back to the ground, letting the last of her words make their way from his mind. ''Yeah, I remember that pretty clearly.'' he raised his voice. ''I'm trying to help you here, let you find out _whatever_ it is that's bothering you about her.''

''What _wouldn't_ I be bothered about?'' Rebecca snapped, raising her voice more. ''She _left_ us. I was three years old, and she had _no_ problem with the fact that she wasn't going to see me again, it didn't bother her at all. She didn't want to know me, she probably didn't even _want_ me in the first place and that's why I couldn't care less about where the hell she is or what sort of a person she was because given what she did to us, I've got a pretty clear understanding of _exactly_ who she was.''

Tony didn't say anything, he was still processing what Rebecca had finally said after all these years. He already knew she didn't like her mother, but he never wanted to push her into an explanation or force her to talk, but it was getting to the point where he had no idea whether she wanted to know or was hiding her entire feelings on the matter, she was a teenager after all.

''The only reason I might have been dwelling on her just a _little_ bit lately...is because you're attack was all over the news. You were gone for three whole months, that was broadcast all over the world...and she didn't even bother to try and get in contact with us, or even try getting in contact with Obadiah. She didn't care that...that you were _gone_, and she didn't care that I was _alone_.'' she explained to Tony, trying to hide that fact that her eyes were becoming watery. ''If you...hadn't come home, I would've had no one, and she knew that.''

Tony could feel his chest become heavy, he had no idea that Rebecca had been thinking that this whole time. He then realised that all of this had added up to her developing depression and that she was still being medicated. After all these years, her mother's absence still tormented her every day and weighed down on her. The fact that his daughter somehow felt unwanted by her mother was hard to handle.

Tony reached his arms out and wrapped around Rebecca, pulling her close to him as she rested her head on his shoulder. She wasn't crying, but her cheeks were stained with tears from talking about her mother. She never spoke about her mother like this before, the conversations involving her barely lasted a few minutes. Rebecca still didn't want to get in contact with her, it just bothered her that her mother could be so cold, especially since Tony could've been dead for all anyone knew and she didn't do anything.

''Listen, don't think that you weren't wanted.'' Tony spoke quietly as she rested on his shoulder. ''You were wanted, so much, okay? Even though she left, doesn't mean you're any less wanted or loved. You changed my life when you were born, and everyday I feel like the luckiest dad in the world to have you.''

Rebecca had a small smile on her face. ''I don't need her, I don't need a mother. Not when I have you, dad. I like it being just us.''

* * *

A couple of days had gone by with Rebecca and Tony finishing up on the suit's major parts. It was now a full suit, not just separate attachments scattered on a table. Every component that was needed to make the suit function was double checked to make sure they all worked with the arc reactor. It wasn't until the afternoon that they felt accomplished enough to consider their work done, and finally put down their tools. Tonight was the night of the fundraiser as well, which meant Pepper would be running around frantic upstairs to make sure Rebecca was getting ready. However, Rebecca wasn't even thinking about the fundraiser, she had vowed not to go upstairs until the seen the first ''test drive'' of the suit.

''Configuration?'' Rebecca reminded him as the metal adjusted around his face after putting the suit completely on. ''Does it work?''

''Of course it works.'' Tony moved about in the suit, making sure all of the pieces were in tact. ''Okay, time for flight.''

Rebecca heard JARVIS warning Tony that the suit was still far from a recommended flight, but Tony just waved off his warning and prepared himself. In a matter of seconds, Tony's feet were off the ground once again and he was flying out of the workshop. Rebecca was shocked to see the power that the suit held, the thrust capacitors had taken off so quickly and powerful that the entire workshop was left shaking and papers were flying everywhere. Running outside through the side door, Rebecca could see the suit powering through the skies above. It was doing twirls and dodging buildings and trees, Tony seeing exactly what the suit could do.

''Everything going okay?'' Rebecca asked, using the workshop phone.

''Oh _yeah_. This is unbelievable.'' Tony laughed, and it was obvious how out of breath he was from the shock of the flight and actually flying above the city.

Rebecca continued to watch for about twenty minutes as Tony flew around aimlessly, just testing all of the attachments, before Pepper called her over the monitor to begin getting ready. Rebecca sighed, having to face the reality of going to this fundraiser tonight. She picked up the phone once again and told her dad that she was leaving, just in case he needed her help and she wasn't there. Walking up the stairs, Rebecca was still overwhelmed by what she had just seen. The whole time she was working on the suit, she knew it would be an extremely powerful suit, but seeing it first hand, seeing the immense power and standing in it's wake was unbelievable.

**Hey guys, hope you enjoyed this chapter, sorry if it was a bit of a ramble and a bit slow. There were a few things I wanted to clear up so that further on in the story there wouldn't be any confusion. I'll have the next chapter up as soon as I can. I've been thinking of writing a Captain America story, there's been an idea in my head for a while, so if I end up putting that up I'd really love it if you guys gave it a read. My other story, I've kind of had a block on what to write for that or how to continue it, but I will definitely be continuing _this_ story - there's so much more to come! Thanks for the reviews, I really appreciate them. **


	14. Chapter 14

Rebecca looked at all the people who surrounded the building as she sat in the limo with Pepper. Cameras flashy wildly and reporters everywhere. Then the nerves hit her, all of those people who are going to want to talk to her, interview her, she didn't know if she could.

"There's so many people." she commented softly, shaking her head at the sight.

Pepper put her hand on top of hers. "It'll be fine. I know it's a lot to take in."

Rebecca just wished her father was there. Instead, no one even knew if he would show up, or was even invited in the first place. Surely he wouldn't be out in the suit now, but he might be considering how excited he was about it, like a child.

"You guys ready?" Happy asked from the front seat, preparing to step out and open their doors.

Pepper glanced over to Rebecca who was still watching the reporters crowd the car, and nodded. "Yeah, we're ready."

Happy let Pepper out first so she could guide Rebecca through the crowd, and then Rebecca stepped out. The microphones were thrown out in front of her, and then the questions began being fired at her. All of the same questions, all she'd heard many times before. Pepper and Rebecca continued through the people until they stopped at an important reporter to answer only a few questions.

"How is your father recovering? We understand he was unstable at the previous press conference." The reporter asked, placing a microphone in front of Rebecca and a camera being pointed at her as well.

"He's doing really well, I don't think he was ever 'unstable', that's just how the public chose to label the fact that the company can do more than just blow stuff up." Rebecca spoke politely, although the sense of bitterness in her voice was obvious. She was tired of answering that question, especially when the reporters made it sound like he was trying to regain his mental stability as if he'd gone crazy.

The reporter nodded his head and continued the questions, all basically about the same thing. Pepper stood by her the whole time as to stand in if any inappropriate questions were asked. Soon, Obadiah appeared behind them after being called over by the reporter.

"Oh, she's _great_ isn't she." he wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "She's gonna do amazing things for the company, she's very capable."

Rebecca smiled and nodded along with him while the reporter asked them both a few more questions before they walked inside the building. Obadiah stayed with them as he and Pepper ordered a drink, Rebecca standing between them quietly. Rebecca knew it was Obadiah who made sure she attended tonight, and she now hand a hint of why. Being seen with Obadiah would've looked very familiar to the public, much like when Tony's father had passed and Obadiah guided him into the business. That was what he was trying to do with her, trying to slowly draw her further into the company by portraying himself as a mentor through the public.

"How is Tony? I haven't had time to stop by lately." Obadiah asked, his expression concerned.

"He's great. He's back in the workshop as usual." Pepper answered.

A few minutes after, Obadiah pointed out to Pepper a very important member of the company and she walked over to talk with him after Obadiah ensured he'd stay with Rebecca. They didn't talk though, not a first. Rebecca felt something was different with Obadiah lately, he used to come by all the time. It was like he was the one running the company behind Tony's back, trying to climb to power. Obadiah was always a very company oriented person, but it seemed to go too far sometimes.

"So, Beccy, tell me, what's your dad been working on lately." he finally spoke, casually sipping at his glass of scotch. ''He seems like a very busy man down in that workshop.''

Rebecca shrugged her shoulders. "I don't think it's anything important." she lied. She knew better than to tell Obadiah the truth, even her father had warned her not to tell.

Obadiah grinned. "Oh come on, he wouldn't want to use that arc reactor if it wasn't important." he pointed out. "What _is_ it that's such a secret?"

Rebecca knew Obadiah was suspicious, he always was. Any time Tony had an idea for the company, he had this compulsive need to be apart of it. She was about to tell him though, this one wasn't any of his business, and if he did find out who knew what would happen.

"I don't know." she shook her head. "You know dad, he just experiments with all sorts of things." she laughed.

Obadiah joined her on the laugh, but it was clear he wasn't amused. "Alright then, guess I'll have to wait and see huh."

Rebecca nodded her head, hoping for the conversation to end soon. That's when she spotted a familiar face coming over to her, it was Lucas. She turned away in hopes to avoid him, but as usual, he didn't take the hint.

"Hey." he walked up to her, his father right behind him, talking to Obadiah. "How are you?"

Rebecca sighed, knowing he was going to annoy her all night now. "I'm great, just great. And you?"

"Yeah, I'm good." he smiled, looking around the room.

For a moment they stood together and listened in on his father and Obadiah's conversation. No matter how interested Rebecca tried to make herself out to be, Lucas just didn't stop talking to her. She knew Pepper wouldn't be okay with her being with Lucas again since the other night, and she knew very well that her dad wouldn't like it. She had been passed out when Tony threatened Lucas, but she already knew the boy was scared of her father.

"So, is your...dad coming tonight?" he asked nervously. There had been talk everywhere that Tony wouldn't be showing up, so she had no idea why he was asking.

"No, he isn't." she answered. "But I still don't think we should hang out tonight."

Lucas seemed disappointed. "I'm sorry about the night at that party, it was my stupid idea to swipe the alcohol anyway." he seemed to be genuinely sorry. "I don't want any trouble, but you're the only One here I know, well, the only one my age anyway."

Rebecca internally groaned at his sympathy seeking, he was right about that fact. Besides business men and woman, they were the only two teenagers at the fundraiser. Children weren't usually permitted at these events, but occasionally teenagers would come along.

"Fine, but I'll probably be busy all night. I've got a lot of people I need to talk to and make appearances with." Rebecca told him, feeling nervous when she realized just how much she needed to do tonight. "Oh, that's Pepper now." she excused herself and followed Pepper to the company member that Obadiah had pointed out earlier.

Pepper waited until they walked a far enough distance away before she spoke. "I don't think it's the best idea to be around that boy tonight." she warned.

Rebecca nodded. "I know, but he's the only other teenager here, it can't hurt to just keep each other company when everyone else is talking business."

"I suppose not, just...be careful, okay? I'm with your dad on this one, I don't trust him."

Before Rebecca could agree with Pepper, she was interrupted by a man who seemed to be very interested in her. He was older than most of the other guests, but he seemed much more polite than anyone else she had spoken to that night.

"Miss. Stark! You know, I haven't spoken to you since you were a little girl following your dad around the headquarters. If I remember correctly, you were the little girl who always wore that little pink backpack! Such a sweet little thing." he remembered, making Rebecca wonder who the man was. Pepper apologized as she has to leave, her name being called by a woman across the room.

She laughed as she remembered too, the little pink backpack she proudly wore everywhere. "Yeah, that sure does sound like me sir."

The man held his arm out onto her shoulder. "Call me Don." he encouraged. The man talked to Rebecca for a lengthy amount of time, mostly reminiscing on how much she had grown. He told her how he didn't agree with the pressure that the company was putting on her at such a young age, and the way they were treating her father. Don was the only person that Rebecca had talked to throughout the night that she enjoyed spending time with. "I knew your grandfather Howard, when I had only just become a member, and he never had to go through the disrespect of his own company, it's not right. Especially given what your father had endured."

Rebecca smiled at the man, a growing respect for him. "You know Don, you may just be the only member here that I like. You're a good man." she complimented.

Don beamed, clearly not used to being appreciated like that. "Why, I thank you very much Miss. Stark. However, I don't think I'll be a member much longer, retirement looks pretty good."

Rebecca laughed, encouraging Don to follow through on his dreams to enjoy his retirement. He restored faith in her that the company wasn't completely full of power and money hungry business people who only saw Stark Industries as a paycheck, he saw it as her family's creation and a legacy that could be passed on, and it meant a lot to her.

* * *

Back at home, Tony was going through the system configuration systems and checking the suit for any damage or dysfunction after his joyride. A problem with icing when reaching a certain level of height in the atmosphere seemed to be a worry, but it wasn't vital at the moment, it would have to e fixed later. The landing of the suit was not as successful as Tony thought it to be, which left him with a few aches and bruises but nothing serious. As he continued checking up on the suit, he remembered the file of paint sample that Rebecca had stored on the system for when the car was their priority. It was the perfect way to find the right color for the suit.

"JARVIS give me a look at how that suit would look in...that." he touched the screen with his hand, throwing it off into the distance of the hologram suit.

"Yes, sir." JARVIS followed accordingly.

Tony then relaxed in his chair and turned on the television only to see reports of his very own fundraiser. He knew it was coming up soon and that Rebecca would be going, but it must've caught him by surprise at the moment since he had far different things on his mind. He listened closely as they showed a short interview with Rebecca, the reporters asking her stupid questions as usual. Tony smirked when he heard her witty answers toward some of the reporters, acting nice and polite. Then a few seconds later he was Obadiah joining in, talking up Rebecca to the press as she quietly stood by. He hadn't seen Obadiah in a while now, and seeing him there with Rebecca just added to his suspicions as to what he had been up to.

_''...no one is expecting Tony Stark to make an appearance.''_

Tony caught onto the last words of a reporter. No one expected him to show up at his own fundraiser, even though he never missed it, all because of that one press conference that made everyone think he had lost his mind. Then, he made a decision.

''JARVIS, try that hot rod red.'' he sat down his glass that he'd been drinking from. As JARVIS showed the end results on the hologram of how the colour would look on the suit, Tony was satisfied with the outcome. JARVIS told him the estimated time of completion on the paint job and Tony stood from his seat. ''Don't wait up for me honey.''

* * *

Rebecca was sipping away at her non-alcoholic beverage since she was one of the only under-age people there, and was looking around the room quite bored as this was her first moment to herself. The amount of people she spoke to in such a short amount of time was overwhelming, and she knew none of them. They all asked about her interests within the company and questions alike, and Rebecca told each one of them the same thing. As she sat her empty glass down, she noticed Lucas making his way back over to her. She cringed at the reminder that he'd waned to stay with her for the night because of his isolation from everyone else, but Rebecca just wished he'd leave her alone for a while, especially after the last party.

''You've been busy all night.'' he commented, obviously he'd been watching on as she spoke to the many people. ''At least _you're_ not being ignored by your father.'' Lucas glared over to his father who was chatting away with a few other men while enjoying a glass of scotch or bourbon.

''Well, I would actually prefer if he _were_ here.'' Rebecca told him, and then noticed that she probably insulted him as if her father were here, Lucas would stay away from her. ''But...anyway...'' she trailed off.

* * *

Tony began walking up the stairs to the building, cameras flashing crazily as the reporters realised who was approaching the doors. He was wearing one of his best suits since it had been a long time since had an occasion to wear them, and it made him feel empowered as he walked pasted all the gawking faces.

''Mr. Stark. Mr. Stark!'' The reporters tried to call him over, but instead they averted his attention to the man they were already interviewing.

Obadiah turned his head quickly when he heard Tony's name being called. ''Tony...'' he seemed surprised to see him. ''I didn't think you would be showing up tonight.''

''Crashin' my own party.'' Tony shrugged, ignoring the many people who were trying to get his attention with their cameras. ''I'm gonna head inside.''

''Tony, Tony!'' Obadiah stopped him and warned him to stay clear of some of the board members, telling him he had them exactly where he wanted them for some sort of idea he was running with. Tony didn't bother questioning him, he just wanted to get out of the flashing lights pointed in his direction, so he nodded and walked away.

Inside, most of the people had engaged in their own conversations within their own groups, thankfully, and didn't seem to notice that Tony was now there. That was, until he began walking around the room and caught the attention of some people, exchanging a few words and then continuing on his path to the bar. Tony knew Pepper and Rebecca would be around somewhere, but he didn't search for them immediately since he just wanted to see exactly who was there.

''Mr. Stark,'' a man approached him as Tony picked up his glass of scotch. ''I'm Agent Coulson.'' Tony was partly paying attention, scanning the room, although his ears pricked once the man informed him of who he worked for. ''I need to debrief you on the details of your escape.''

Just then, Tony noticed the woman he'd been staring at in the middle of the room was in fact Pepper. He rarely seen her like this, without the professional attire and the brief case, folders and files. She looked beautiful, and Tony was completely mesmerized. The dress she wore complimented her in every way, and her hair glowed as it sat just beneath her shoulders. Once again, Tony was drawn from his stare when the man continued talking, suggesting an appointment.

''Absolutely, sure.'' Tony finally spoke, turning slightly to the man. ''I'll just, uh...go to my assistant now...and uh, lock that in, okay.'' Tony's feet now took him away from the man and he made his way over to a shocked Pepper who was obviously not expecting his appearance.

* * *

Rebecca had just picked up her third drink, it was hard to even find time to just sip away at her drink when there were so many people who she needed to talk to and people who wanted to talk to her. Not to mention the fact that she was being followed around continually by Lucas.

''That's _it_, I'm standing here until I finish this drink, no more talking to board members for a while.'' she vowed, swirling her straw around through the ice cubes in the drinks. ''You don't have to stand around here bored, I'm sure there's plenty of people who want to talk to you too.'' she told Lucas.

He shrugged his shoulders, looking around the room. ''No, not really.''

Rebecca sighed, Lucas obviously couldn't take the hint. As she put the straw to her lips, she scanned the room for any one else that Pepper had suggested she talk to, and that's when she saw her dad standing over with Pepper, and he seemed to notice who she was standing with given the look on his face.

''Okay...so I guess my dad _did_ show up.'' Rebecca observed.

''What? Your dad's _here_?'' Lucas asked, a nervous look on his face. He followed where Rebecca was looking and his eyes caught onto Tony's who was waving over at him with a mock smile on his face. ''I don't think...I probably shouldn't be here with you.''

Rebecca felt relief, finally she could be rid of him. ''Yeah, that's probably for the best.''

''We could go for a walk or something?'' he suggested.

''I don't know, I don't really want to go behind his back again.'' Rebecca looked at him apologetically. When she turned back over to the middle of the room again, her dad was no longer there and neither was Pepper. For a moment she thought maybe her dad had showed up behind them, ready for some sort of angry rant, but he was nowhere in sight. ''Huh, where'd they go?'' she looked around again.

''Probably talking to board members and stuff,'' Lucas answered, looking as if he was on Tony alert as well. ''I guess we could just stay here, or go for a walk. Whatever.''

Rebecca felt like groaning, she was feeling so suffocated by Lucas, although she knew why he was there, he was lonely. She picked up her drink again, swirling it once more before she took a seat at a nearby table with Lucas and prepared herself for another one of his long stories of somewhere he holidayed or something alike.


	15. Chapter 15

"I'm going to _kill_ that kid." Tony shook his head, referring to Lucas who he remembered clearly warning to stay away from Rebecca. Pepper acknowledged what he was saying but it was obvious her mind was elsewhere. "What? You seem..." he trailed off.

Pepper glanced around at the faces that looked back over at them, and he instantly felt nervous. It was most likely just Pepper's paranoia, but she felt that all eyes in the room were watching her and Tony dance, and she could almost hear their judgements. Tony managed to take Pepper's mind off of her worries by expressing his fondness of the dress she was wearing, which added to her paranoia that she was looking ridiculously overdressed and suggesting.

"This is so unprofessional." she spoke quietly, biting her lip nervously as she looked around the room once again. "I mean...you're my boss, and everyone's watching-"

"I could fire you, if that'd take the edge off." Tony smirked.

Pepper chuckled. "I don't think you could tie your shoes without me."

They continued to dance and talk about Tony's dependency on Pepper, although he wouldn't admit it, and Pepper continued to dwell on her worry that everyone was looking at them. It was all paranoia of course since they mixed into the crowd on the dance floor and were hardy even noticed by the others. All Pepper kept thinking was how close they were.

"Air?" Tony suggested when they ceased talking for a while, which left them swaying slowly while staring at each other intensely.

"Yes, I could use some air." Pepper nodded, following as Tony led them away from the dance floor.

* * *

Rebecca remained at the table with Lucas for longer than she had intended, but she didn't want to risk walking around and being engaged into another company conversation or run into her father while Lucas was still following her around. It was tempting to just get up and walk away, leaving him to the table alone, but Rebecca would've felt guilty for the rest of the night.

"This is _so_ boring." she complained as she played with the flowers on the table as she had been doing for the past hour.

Lucas sighed. "Yeah...hey come with me then. Hopefully we can find something else to do." he stood up, holding his hand out for hers.

Rebecca looked at his suspiciously. "Okay, but fair warning, my dad is around here somewhere and there is to be no alcohol tonight." she spoke firmly.

Lucas rolled his eyes and chuckled. "I'm not stupid."

Rebecca took his hand, letting him help her up from her seat. She knew it was probably a bad idea to be the one following him around, but she actually was very bored and figured it couldn't so much harm. As she followed his further through the room, he led them to the crowded dance floor.

"Oh, god, no!" Rebecca quickly tried to turn and walk away, but Lucas still had hold of her hand and gently pulled her back. "I'm not a dancer." she warned.

"Well then it's a good thing I am." he pulled her in close and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Just go with it, okay?"

Rebecca didn't like the whole idea of dancing, especially with a crowd, but thankfully they integrated amongst them all. She hoped that Tony wasn't walking around anywhere near, she could just imagine the stern rant she would be given, not to mention the public humiliation of him dragging Lucas away from her. Rebecca's feet knocked against his a few times, and she gave him a look telling him he was warned of her terrible dancing skills.

"You're not as bad as you think." he laughed, looking up from their feet. "See? It's not that bad, is it?"

Rebecca rolled her eyes. "Speak for yourself, you're not tripling over your own feet." Just as he said the last word, her left foot twisted thanks to the new heels she was wearing, and she felt herself lose balance.

Lucas, quick on his feet, rushed to gather his arms around her waist again and stop her from falling flat on her back. Rebecca gasped from the initial shock before she laughed at her own bad luck, and then felt the pain from her unfortunate accident.

"Damnit, must've twisted my ankle." she shook her head as she looked down, assessing her foot.

She felt Lucas's arms still behind her firmly, holding her close and hen she looked back up, she was overwhelmed with shock as he forced his lips onto hers. At first it took a moment for Rebecca to register what was happening since it had all happened so fast, and then she the reality of what was going on hit her. She pressed her arms into his chest applied some force in order to separate them.

"Whoa, what are you doing?" she caught her breath when their lips broke apart.

Lucas looked at her, confused. "What?"

"What do you mean '_what_'?" she raised an eyebrow.

"What's the big deal?" he dipped his head down again, almost connecting back with her lips before Rebecca once again pushed against his chest. "It's just kissing, Bec. What's the problem?"

Rebecca didn't like the fact he was calling her Bec, or the fact his hands were still snaked around her waist, pulling her closer. "The problem? You can't just _do_ that!" she looked around the room, hoping no one was watching. She had put so much effort into making a lasting impression tonight, she wasn't about to have all of that ruined by attracting attention. "You can't just force yourself onto me like that, and in front of everyone."

Lucas looked over her shoulders and saw nobody looking. "No one's even paying attention, it's just a bit of fun. You were the one who said you were bored."

Rebecca couldn't believe how stupid he was being. "Yeah, I was _bored_, I didn't mean I wanted to _get_ with you in the middle of the room." she tried to release his grip on her. "I'm going."

"Hey, would you just calm down." he spoke quietly, but his arms didn't move. "I don't see why you're getting all angry, I thought we liked each other."

Rebecca's eyes widened. "Well you thought wrong." she didn't wait for a response, instead she just tried to get away from the dance floor. "Let me go."

Lucas tried to talk her into staying, arms still tight around her. "Just _calm_ down, you're making a scene."

"Get your hands _off_ me." Lucas looked at her with pleading eyes, not wanting her to leave. ''Fine.'' she looked at him with an amused expression before gazing around the room once more to make sure no eyes were on them. "Fine." With a subtle and swift movement, Rebecca brought her knee up with force and hit him right in the area of most pain for males. She heard a quick intake of breath from him before his hands fell to his stomach, clutching. "You need to learn how to treat women, dick."

With that, Rebecca walked away from the dance floor as if nothing happened, a content smile on her face, and a slight limp in her left leg from the twisted ankle. Now, free from Lucas, Rebecca set out on a quest to find either Pepper or her father and go home.

* * *

Tony and Pepper had been standing outside on the balcony for a while now, Pepper venting all of her worry about all of the board members watching on as they danced, being closer together than the rest of the people on the dance floor.

''I just don't see what the big deal is.'' Tony shrugged.

''Well, it _is_ a big deal. There we were dancing together, and...I mean you're my _boss_, and I'm wearing this_ ridiculous_ dress, and everyone knows you and how you are with women...which is totally fine, but...it was so inappropriate.'' Pepper explained, clearly stressed out over the situation.

Tony tried to make her relax, but she was too worked up. ''I just...I think you're reading too much into it.''

Then they both just stopped talking for a moment, and Pepper noticed their bodies moving closer together, leaving their faces barely inches apart. They both stood their silently, neither of them moving and the seconds began to pass before Pepper finally spoke.

''I would like a drink.'' she spoke softly, their position unchanging.

Tony nodded his head and it took a moment for his body to actually move away from her. ''Yeah, a drink.'' he began walking off, listening to Pepper's request for a vodka martini. He continued through the doors and into the bar, placing his order, and then he stood quietly, thinking about what had just happened between him and Pepper.

''Tony,'' a woman walked up to him, and he realised she was a familiar face. Tony had remembered spending a night with the woman many months ago, on one of his less sober nights, and he sensed this conversation would be a less than comfortable one, especially since she was a reporter.

Tony braced himself, putting on a smile. ''Hey...uh...'' he searched for her name, knowing he had completely forgotten.

''Christine.'' the woman smiled forcefully. ''_Vanity Fair_.''

Tony then nodded his head, pulling a face as to how he could possibly forget. ''Right, yeah, of course, Christine.'' he smiled at her again.

Christine spoke angrily to him, telling how she couldn't believe he actually showed up. He understood she would probably be a bit irritated given their past experience together and the fact he couldn't even recall her name, but she was starting to get on his nerves with her tone. Tony however just nodded his head as the woman continued to ramble on. It wasn't until she mentioned a few key words that he actually started listening extremely closely. Christine claimed that Stark Industries was exporting weaponry to the terrorist group, The Ten Rings.

''No.'' Tony shook his head. ''I would know about it.'' Even as Tony assured her, he didn't even believe himself. He had been shut out, he barely knew what the company was doing behind his back now, but this was impossible, he wouldn't have approved such an exchange.

Christine scoffed and handed him a small pile of photographs. ''See for yourself.'' The photographs were clear evidence of the terrorists moving shipments of weapons, all labelled very clearly with Stark Industries written on the side, and it made Tony's head ache with anger. ''Your company is doing this, you're sending weapons to these people, feeding their terrorism.''

Tony looked back up at her from the photos. ''I didn't approve these shipments.''

''Well your _company_ did.''

''Well _I'm_ not my_ company_.'' he glared at her.

* * *

Tony still had a firm grasp of the photos in his hands as he walked through the room quickly, his eyes locked on the door and the sound of Christine following behind him. He needed to find Obadiah, he needed answers and only Obadiah would've had the power to approve these sort of orders to such a group of people, it caused him an unbelievable amount of anger.

''Tony, what the _hell_ are you doing?'' Christine's breath was short as she tried to keep up with Tony's almost running through the room.

''Getting answers.'' he told her.

The crowd was a struggle to get through with the people refusing to get out of his way, although for all he knew they could have been moving, but he was just too rushed.

''Dad!'' he heard Rebecca's voice off to the side, and he slowed down as his eyes scanned for her. ''Dad! I've been looking everywhere for you, I didn't think you were-''

''I can't talk about it right now.'' he waved his hands, too frustrated. ''Have you seen Obadiah?''

Rebecca nodded her head, but her eyes were full of worry, she was so confused and unaware of what was happening. ''I saw him heading outside.'' she spoke, and then pointed over to the far side door. ''Out that door.''

Tony grabbed her hand, gesturing for her to come with him. She went with him, ignoring the pain of her ankle, and her heart pounded with worry. She hadn't seen her dad so angry for a long time, and she feared what was about to happen. Another part of her wondered who the woman was behind her, following closely behind her father with determination, just as he did.

''What's going on? Dad?'' she asked, although she had no idea if he heard her considering how many people they were pushing through. ''What happened?''

Tony spared a few seconds to turn to his daughter, but his pace didn't change as he pushed through the crowd. ''I can't explain here.''

Rebecca kept thinking of what could've happened, what could've pushed her dad so far that he took on this absolute rage. Rebecca didn't ask any more, partly out of fear of what the answer could be. It involved Obadiah, obviously, and she thought up as many possibilities that she could to try and find an answer. When they walked through the door, leading them out to the bright lights and cameras, Tony could see Obadiah over by the stairs, and he made his way over.

''Bec, how 'bout you go find Pepper, okay? Go find Happy, I'll meet up with you, we'll leave soon.'' he instructed.

Rebecca hesitantly nodded, and slowly backed away as she watched her father walk up to Obadiah. The woman that had been following with them stood back from Tony slightly, watching on for answers just as Tony did. Rebecca stood where she was for a moment, trying to see what was going on. She first expecting her dad to yell at Obadiah given the extent of his anger, but instead he just handed him whatever was in his hand and began asking questions, probably due to the amount of cameras that surrounded them. Tony didn't need any more footage to add to the claims of his insanity. Rebecca then took a few more steps back before she stopped again, trying to see what was now happening again. Obadiah was finally talking to him, and Tony didn't seem to like what he was hearing.

''Who do you think filed that injunction against you?'' Obadiah told Tony with a less than sympathetic look. Tony froze, trying to accept what he had been told. ''It's the only way I could protect you.'' Obadiah began walking off, leaving Tony alone in the same spot, eyes wide and breathing heavily as he tried to make sense of what had just happened.

Rebecca watched Obadiah walk away and leave her dad standing in shock, and for a moment she considered going to him, but she knew he wasn't in the mood to talk right now, and she let him take his time. The woman walked away as well, leaving Tony to himself. She looked at Rebecca as she passed, offering her a slight smile. Rebecca then slowly made her way to the door, flickering her eyes back to her dad a few times before returning inside to the party in search of Pepper and Happy, just as her dad asked.

* * *

**Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the chapter and aren't getting bored with the story. I have a feeling this chapter is a bit short, but I wanted to leave the next bit for the next chapter. Anyway, I_ did_ end up publishing my Captain America story which is called ''Back Into The World'', so you guys can check that out if you want. Thanks for the reviews, I _really_ appreciate them and I love to hear what you guys think! **


	16. Chapter 16

Rebecca brushed past the crowds of people who filled the room, trying to find her way to Pepper, wherever she was. A few people tried to stop her for a conversation, but Rebecca apologized and kept forcing her way through the room. She needed to find out what had happened between Obadiah and her dad, there was something terribly wrong, she hadn't seen her dad so angry in a long time, and it must've been something pretty extreme.

''Happy!'' she was relieved to have at least found him standing in the corner. ''Have you seen Pepper? Dad said we're leaving soon.''

Happy had a confused look on his face. ''I thought she was with your dad...I haven't seen her in a while.'' he looked around the room. ''Don't worry, I'll find her, just wait here, don't go anywhere.''

Rebecca nodded and took a seat in the corner, hoping no one would come up to her wanting to have a chat. She was also hoping not to see Lucas hanging around still, thinking he probably still had the nerve to come up to her and apologize or something. Then, she spotted a woman standing alone not far from her, and immediately recognized her as the woman that had followed Tony outside and seemed to have an idea of what was going on. Rebecca debated with herself on whether or not she should go over, but as the time passed and neither Tony, Pepper or Happy made an appearance, she decided to walk over.

''Excuse me,'' The woman turned and looked at Rebecca, her expression changing. ''Who are you?''

The woman wasn't expecting the daughter of Tony Stark to come up to her like this, and was put on the spot. There was no way Rebecca would've known who she was considering Tony never took women back to his home, so she took the opportunity to formally introduce herself.

''Christine Everhart, _Vanity Fair_ magazine.'' she extended a hand out, offering for Rebecca to take it. ''Rebecca Stark, I must say it's an honour to finally speak with you, not many reporters get that chance with you.''

Rebecca just nodded her head while shaking her hand. ''This isn't a, uh,_ reporter_ situation, if you don't mind.'' Christine took a moment before nodding in understanding, still displaying a smile on her face. ''I want to know...what you know.''

''I'm sorry?'' Christine looked confused, although she knew what Rebecca was talking about.

Rebecca sighed. ''I might be sixteen, but I'm not stupid, so don't talk to me like I am. What's going on?''

Christine looked around them both, hoping either Tony or his assistant would show up so she wouldn't have to do this. ''Look, you need to talk to your dad about it. It's company information, after all.''

''Yeah, the company that I'm apart of, so I'd say your entitled to tell me.'' Rebecca spoke confidently. ''I just want to know what's got everyone so...pissed off. Tell me.''

Christine sighed, thinking of what could happen if she told the girl. It was true, she was apart of the company, that's what the whole night was about for her, so she figured she could handle being told. ''It's to do with the company's exportation of weapons.'' she spoke honestly, and Rebecca nodded for her to continue. ''There's been evidence of weaponry being exported to...the Ten Rings.''

Rebecca's mouth dropped in shock, the mention of the terrorist group sent an unwelcome feeling through her. ''No way. Stark Industries wouldn't be a part of that. Especially after...my dad would've had to approve that, all exportations go through him.''

Christine shook her head sympathetically. ''Apparently not. There's photographic evidence. I'd show you but your dad took them to-''

''Obadiah.'' Rebecca closed her eyes, her head shaking as is she had been disappointed. ''It was Obadiah, wasn't it?''

* * *

The drive home was full of uncomfortable silence. Tony had left his sports car with the valet, and was in no mood to drive home. Happy wasn't speaking, not offering a conversation as he usually did, obviously picking up on the tension amongst everyone. Pepper sat quietly, looking out the window as they passed through the city streets. Rebecca looked between everyone, noticing the awkwardness that had taken over the car, and Tony sat unbelievably silent while staring at the road ahead of them.

His mind was running wildly, replaying everything that had happened when he confronted Obadiah over the exportations, and he was still struggling to come to terms with the betrayal.

_''We're iron mongers, Tony, we make weapons, that's what this company is for. We build, we sell.'' Obadiah spoke so easily, as if he couldn't see the harm in selling to terrorists. He folded the photos back into a pile and handed them to Tony._

_''Not to terrorists! And the Jericho?'' Tony pointed toward the photo. ''How the hell could you approve that? Do you have any idea what they're gonna do with that?'' Tony argued. _

_''We gotta sell to both sides, Tony. That's what makes us successful, our willingness to sell, regardless.'' Obadiah shrugged._

_''Not any more, not through my company. We're not selling to them, I'll shut down the whole thing.'' _

_Obadiah shook his head. ''And this is why you can't be in control, Tony. Do you know what it does to the company when you refuse to sell weapons to these people because of some...some morality issues?''_

_''They're not people, they're terrorists. You're dealing under the table and I won't allow it.'' Tony spoke firmly._

_''Tony,'' Obadiah shook his head again, pulling him in for a photo as the cameras surrounded them. ''Who do you think filed that injunction against you? Hm?'' Tony's eyes widened as the truth hit him. ''It's the only way I could protect you.''_

Tony shook his head as the car kept driving, no one speaking, and he tried to convince himself that what just happened was real, and he had to face the fact that Obadiah had changed too much, clawing his way to power even if it meant betraying Tony.

* * *

Not much was said when they returned home after escorting Pepper back to her apartment, both Tony and Rebecca going straight to bed without a single word. Rebecca had now already known what had happened thanks to her confrontation with Christine, and so she didn't push the issue with Tony, which left no words spoken between them.

When Rebecca woke up the next morning, showered and walked into the living room, she was surprised to see Rhodey standing around with Pepper, and that's when Rebecca remembered.

''I totally forgot!'' she threw a hand to her forehead. ''How the_ hell_ did I forget?''

Rhodey shrugged his shoulders. ''Hey, I almost forgot too. So, you still want to come out?''

Rebecca remembered the deal she'd made with Rhodey a week prior, which was to go out to the army base training grounds with him to observe the operational systems. Normally she'd have no interest in any army observation, but she had told Rhodey she knew how to operate those things, which she did, and was eager to prove it. Also, she did enjoy spending time with him, he was like her uncle, and it would definitely take her mind off things as well as give her dad some time to cool off.

''Yeah, I'd _never_ miss an opportunity to prove you wrong.'' she laughed. ''When?''

Rhodey rolled his eyes at her remark. ''Whenever you're ready.''

''Okay, give me a few minutes!'' she ran back to her room, almost tripping on her own feet as she hurried to get ready.

''She'll be more than a few minutes, I hope you know.'' Pepper smiled.

''Yeah, I've gotten used to that around here.'' Rhodey laughed.

Rhodey took a seat next to Pepper as she flipped through her folder, typing things into her laptop and making notes on her phone. Tony had been down in the workshop all morning, and probably all night too. Rhodey had already tried to walk down to the workshop to see him earlier, but Pepper stopped him before he could get too far.

''Uh, Tony asked that no one interrupt him in the workshop today, he's been in a weird mood.'' Pepper explained. ''I could ask him to come upstairs if you'd like.''

Rhodey shook his head. ''No, no, don't worry about it.''

* * *

"Tony?" Pepper called his name through the speaker to his workshop. "Tony?" she repeated, but no answer. "Well I'm coming down there, so don't say I didn't warn you."

Pepper sat down the files in her hands and began walking toward the stairs. There were a lot of things she was expecting to see after everyone else had been warned not to go down there, but he didn't actually tell Pepper not to come down to the workshop since she always had things to give him and get him to sign or anything like that, but she wasn't expecting an empty room.

"Tony?" she called out to the room as she entered her security code into the door.

The only noise in the room was the television, still blaring. Pepper was confused as to where Tony went, all of his cars were still in place. She came to the conclusion that he went to pick up his car from the fundraiser building, but she was a little annoyed he didn't let her know. There was a lot of things he needed to do today, but Pepper had taken his bad mood into consideration. Deciding not to call him, wherever he was, she left a note on his desk for when he brought the car back.

_''Bec has gone with Rhodey, there is a list on the counter if you have time. Pepper.'' _

* * *

Rebecca followed Rhodey from the car, passing all of the combat jets and planes that were being worked on. The security in this place was alike the security in any other military environment, but since Rebecca was Tony Stark's daughter, who had provided the military with weapons for years, and had been out here many times with Tony and Rhodey since she was a child, she was permitted in the facilities. One day she might be the one in charge of the weapons distribution, so having her explore the military practices every now and then was encouraged.

''Rhodes,'' Major Allen called out from behind them. ''and Miss. Stark, nice to see you again.'' he smiled.

''Nice to see you too, Major.'' Rebecca returned the smile.

''We're just going to be in the operation room today, doing some observations.'' Rhodey told him.

Major Allen nodded. ''Good to hear you're getting into the military business,'' he patted his arm against Rebecca's shoulder. ''soon you'll be doing demonstrations for us, just like your dad.''

Rebecca nodded along, knowing that's not what she was going to be doing. ''Yeah, maybe, one day.''

Major Allen walked away, headed in the same direction that Rhodey was about to take Rebecca, into the operations room. There must've been something planned for today, there were a few fighter combat jets missing. There were a lot of mechanics around fixing the jets, and this caused Rebecca to walk over and observe the problems. It made Rhodey wonder what sort of position within the company she would in fact be taking over when she's old enough, given her interests were mostly in the mechanics of the military, not the weapons.

''You're not gonna tell these guys how to do their job, are you?'' Rhodey joined her as they walked around the engines that were being repaired.

''Of course not.'' Rebecca shook her head. ''Although there _are _much simpler ways to do that.'' she pointed to the man who was removing something from the engine and pulling apart the pieces. ''I can't watch, it's too frustrating.''

Rhodey chuckled. ''Okay, you done criticizing? Let's head over to the operations room, see if _their_ work is up to your standard.''

''Hey, I respect the work _everyone_ here does.'' Rebecca defended. ''Even you!'' she walked past him, walking ahead to the stairs. ''Er, sometimes.''

* * *

"Still think you could control one of these things?" Rhodey asked Rebecca, pointing toward one of the control panels that helped with one of the fighter jets that were in the air.

Rebecca looked over the panel, taking note of the different buttons and features before coming to a conclusion. "Doesn't seem too hard. You've got the main power here, don't wanna mess with that, and all of these smaller buttons are safety control, these are the oxygen levels within the pit and these tinier buttons here bring up the pressure in the atmosphere and can engage a flight stabilizer that will maintain the highest level that the jet can can handle without risking life. All in all there's not too much that anyone here could do if there was an emergency in the air, except for provide relevant information to the pilot."

Rhodey seemed surprised at the amount of knowledge she had of the pilot controls, and the others seemed impressed as well. It wasn't long before Rhodey was informed that there was in fact an operation in place, and he sighed at the placement of the mission.

"We have two of ours in the area at the moment, their scanning the area around." one of the men informed him.

"Okay, well if you need me just call." Rhodey suggested.

"Will do sir."

A few beeps came from one of the monitors, and gasps came from a few of the men.

"Major, we have unidentifiable craft!" the pilot called over the radio.

"Oh my god...what is that?" Major Allen gazed at the monitor before him.

Rhodey rushed over to Major Allen and looked on at the monitor before the image came up on the bigger screen in front of them all. Rebecca's mouth fell open in shock, and she could feel her body stiffen up. The suit. She could recognize in a split second of gaze, and the red paint made it impossible to miss. There was her father, flying through the skies with a bunch of fighter jets, and she was the only one who knew.

"Looks like its a bogey." Major Allen confirmed for the team. "Can we get a clear sighting of this thing? We need to find out what that thing is."

Rhodey's first reaction instantly took him to Tony. This sort of stuff was in his area, with all the tech equipment he was in control of it wasn't hard to believe that one of them got away.

"What does this look like to you" he asked Rebecca, whose eyes were glued to the screen with an immense look of concern on her face.

"I-I don't know." she stammered.

Rhodey raised his eyebrow. "Are you sure your dad hasn't got tech in this area?" Rebecca shook her head and gave a slight shrug of her shoulders, unsure of how to respond. "Okay, well I better make a call."

Rebecca felt guilty for lying, especially to Rhodey when it involved her dad, but she didn't know what to say. 'Yeah that's dad flying with those jets' wouldn't be the best way to break the news, and she didn't know why her dad would want her to do. Lie to Rhodey and completely ignore the fact that her dad could get hurt? Or tell Rhodey the truth and bring about a whole other situation. She was torn, and all she could focus on was watching the suit soar through the air while everyone else stared at the unknown object.

"Tony..." Rebecca heard Rhodey speak, the mention of her dad's name catching her attention. He was asking about the bogey, he knew it was suspicious. "What's that noise?" he questioned. Rebecca's eyes flickered back to the screen, watching the suit do turns ad twists to try and lose the jets. "Why do you sound out of breath?" Rebecca's heart was pounding in her chest. Did he know? He was extremely suspicious, and he continued questioning Tony. "You sure you got nothing in this area?" A brief pause. "Good, because I'm looking at something right now and we're about to blow it to kingdom come." With that, Rhodey put down the phone.

"What? Why are you blowing it up?" Rebecca asked him worriedly. "You don't even _know_ what it is yet!"

Rebecca's eyes widened as she realized what they were planning to do. They were targeting him, about to shoot explosives at him, and she was watching the whole thing.

''Do you have radio contact with the object?'' Major Allen asked the pilot.

''Unresponsive, sir.''

''Then you are clear to engage.'' Major announced.

"No, no, no, you _can't_ blow it up!" Rebecca pleaded, and Rhodey became even more suspicious.

"Bec, what is-"

"It's disappeared!" the pilot's voice came over the monitor. "The bogey's gone ultrasonic sir!"

Everyone's eyes shot back up to the screen, showing no signs of the red suit anywhere. For a moment the room was silent, and the only sound that broke that silence was Rhodey's phone buzzing.

"Tony?" he answered, and Rebecca walked over to stand beside him, trying to listen, trying to resist taking the phone from him and yelling at her father for what he was doing. "It's who?" Rhodey's expression was confused, and it only took a moment for her dad to explain before Rhodey looked again the Rebecca before speaking. "No, you see, this isn't a game. You do not send civilian equipment into my active war zone. You understand that?" He paused for a long moment as Tony spoke to him, and it was clear now that Rhodey knew exactly what was going on. ''Bec...''

''He's underneath!'' one of the men yelled, informing the pilot as well as the others.

''Roll!'' Major Allen commanded. ''Shake him off!''

Rebecca bit down on her lip as she watched her father get thrown around by the jets and thrashed through the skies. Rhodey also looked on with a worried expression, lost for words and actions. Just as everyone thought they would have a clear shot, the suit flew around the sky as a result of the jet's rolls and shakes, and hit the wing of the other jet.

''Hit! We've got a hit!'' the other pilot screamed through the monitor.

They watched as the man shot from the jet and soared through the air, everyone had now gone silent as they waited for the parachute to launch.

''If you get a clear shot, take it!'' Major yelled to the other pilot, making everyone in the room jump.

Rhodey walked over to him and spoke softly. ''Sir, I don't think we should be focusing on that right now, we need to get these pilots back-''

''That thing jut blew out a raptor jet wing,'' Major Allen turned to him with anger in his eyes. ''If you get a clear shot, _take it_!''

Rebecca stood back against a far wall, watching everything unfold before her, useless. Rhodey was trying his best, but he couldn't do anything against Major Allen's orders. Everyone was silent in the room again, just waiting for any sign of a parachute, and any sign of the red object in the air. Rebecca looked over to Rhodey who stared back at her with an apologetic expression, both just waiting for a sign.

* * *

**Hey guys, hope you enjoyed this chapter! Hope it wasn't too rushed, or confusing, but this chapter will continue on in the next one with this whole situation, and probably from now on it will be a lot more focused on the Iron Man suit and the whole ordeal with Obadiah, so it's gettin' to the good stuff...hopefully. I have a bad habit of trying to make sure everything fits, but resulting in rushing things or skipping bits, but I just really want you guys to enjoy it! If there's anything you want me to focus on more in the next chapter, just let me know and I'll try my best. Thank you so much for the reviews! I love hearing for you all! x**


	17. Chapter 17

The look that Rebecca gave Rhodey screamed for help, she was powerless in this situation, and unfortunately so was he. All they could do was watch for the flying red suit to appear once again. Silence filled the room, only the sound of monitors beeping away, reminding the team that one of their men were still falling through the air after ejecting his seat.

"Do we have a 'chute?" Major Allen asked quietly into the small microphone.

There was a brief pause. "No 'chute. I repeat, no 'chute." the pilot replied.

All of the men then bowed their heads, hoping for the best. Through the vision of the camera in the pilot's jet, there was a red flash across the screen, but nothing was said. All focus was on their falling pilot, but they hadn't missed the object. It wasn't long after the red flashed across the sky that the pilot finally reported back with news that awoke the whole team from their daze.

"We have a 'chute!"

The entire room filled with relief, the cheer of the men was almost deafening. Rebecca shut her eyes for a moment, relieved that this whole ordeal hadn't caused a man to lose his life, but she still had no idea about her dad. Rhodey clapped his hands loudly, happy that his fellow pilot was safe, before his phone began to ring once more.

"Tony!" he picked up the phone, sighing as he heard Tony's voice on the other side. He must've been okay given the chuckle he managed to cause Rhodey. "You owe me a plane, you know that right?" They continued to talk for a while longer.

"Well? Is he okay? What was he doing?" Rebecca asked once he sat the phone down again.

Rhodey put his hand on Rebecca's shoulder, nodding toward the door. "Let's get some air, we'll talk."

Once they were outside, Rebecca turned straight back to Rhodey, waiting for answers. She knew she wouldn't get much information given how short the phone calls had been, but it was better than not knowing anything at all.

"Look, I don't know what he was doing out there in the first place, but he's okay. Whatever that..._suit_ is made of or whatever is in that thing saved his life, and my pilot's as well." Rhodey explained. "I don't know how you or your dad managed to keep that one a secret."

Rebecca sighed, still so confused by the whole situation. Tony had been in such a bad mood since the fundraiser, she wasn't expecting her day to involve watching him fly through the sky's while the military tried to kill him.

"I know that he wanted to tell you about it, it's just that because-"

Rhodey shook his head. "Hey, listen the less I know the better, I told your dad that."

Rebecca nodded her head, understanding the position he would be in if he was to know too much. "What happens now? Does anyone else know?"

Rhodey shook his head. "No, I know Major Allen was suspicious though, your dad's always been the go-to guy for unknown equipment, but he trusts me.'' Rhodey looked down, a tinge of guilt in his mind, but he would never betray Tony. ''There'll be press, and I'll need to explain what happened." Rebecca gave him a questioning look. "Don't worry, I got it covered."

* * *

It was dark when Tony reached his home, and it was hard to find the small hole in the roof he had accidentally created a few days before, which had proved to be a helpful entrance and exit in times like these. His suit was not in the best shape after his accidental run in with the military jets, but it was nothing that he couldn't fix. As he lowered down to the circle in the roof, he was careful not to drop too loudly onto the workshop floor, but it was almost impossible not to make a noise. It had taken him a few moments after removing his helmet before he noticed the lights in the workshop were on. Tony looked around the room, but he saw no one. He must've left them on himself.

"Jarvis, let's start the dissemble." Tony walked out onto a small platform he had prepared a few days ago.

"Very well, sir."

He placed his feet in the designated spots he had marked out and readied himself for the robotic arms that were reaching out to carefully remove the suit. This was a learning process, he hadn't set the program up before and this would be the first time using the system for this. At least he had the helmet off, he couldn't imagine the metal arms swinging around his face and battering him.

"Easy,_ easy_!" Tony snapped as his leg was pulled up, causing him to lose whatever balance he had control of.

"Sir, the more you move, the more difficult this becomes." Jarvis warned.

"Be gentle, it's my first time." Tony tried to stay still, but the arms were pulling at his shoulder and legs, trying to recognize how the suit was to be detached from each piece. "I designed this to come off, so..."

Tony continued his challenge to stand still, which was proving to be a more difficult task than it should be, and still none of the suit was coming off. He wondered to himself why he didn't ever test this system beforehand instead of leaving it to the moment when he really needed to get out of it, it was turning out to be an annoyingly difficult situation.

"Oh my _god_..." he heard a voice gasp behind him.

He delayed turning around, hoping Pepper would continue talking so he wouldn't have to, but he had no choice but to turn to her with a forced smile and watch her expression.

"Let's face it, this is not the worst thing you've caught me doing." he spoke, trying to break the tension of Pepper seeing the suit.

"Are those bullet holes?" she gaped, walking closer to the suit.

"What? Uh- um- y'know a lot of things can look like bullet holes on this thing." Tony tried to get out of that conversation. "It's nothing."

Pepper knew there were a lot of things Tony kept from her, but it wasn't as if he necessarily went out of his way to hide everything, he didn't mind Pepper seeing his work, he trusted her more than anyone, but seeing the suit could possibly bring about some problems in the future if footage was ever shown. Whatever this was though, was nothing she could have been expecting.

* * *

Tony was still down in the lab in the early hours of the morning, assessing the damage to his suit. He had Jarvis analyse the main problems and devised a few changes to make sure the damage wouldn't be as bad next time anything like this happened. The flight stabilizers had been worn out due to the mileage, and Tony had already replaced them with the extras he'd made while working on building the suit. A stronger metal was in order as well, much stronger. The metal he used was the strongest there had been, made by himself, and enhanced with all sorts of defensive layers to ensure it was impenetrable, but in recent events it had proven to need an upgrade.

Tony was sitting at one of the benches, soldering parts of the suit that needed to be fixed, and reviewing Jarvis's analysis. He had only just stopped for a moment when he heard the workshop door swing open.

"What the hell was that?" Rebecca almost yelled at him, the anger clear in her voice.

Tony looked around the room suspiciously before turning back to her. "Okay you're gonna have to clear that up for me."

Rebecca's eyes widened at how casual he was being considering what had happened. "Seriously?" she folded her arms in front of her. "Well let's see, I saw this suit that looked a lot like this one here flying through the skies, taking out a fighter jet's wing, almost killing the pilot and only just missed being blown up by the military."

It was clear that Tony had no idea that Rebecca knew about that. He had planned on telling her about it, skipping a few details that would spark this sort of reaction, but clearly she'd beaten him to it. Tony didn't know what to say to her that would allow him to explain this easily, so he just looked down at the ground. A few seconds passed and neither of them spoke, so he relented and looked up, takin a breath the begin speaking.

"I can explain all of it," he held his hands up defensively. "if you let me. Just let_ me_ talk, and then _you_ can continue yelling...or whatever."

Rebecca shook her head. "I wasn't yelling."

Tony raised his eyebrows. "Oh...that wasn't yelling?"

"Don't try and stall, I want to know why you took that thing out _there._ I didn't help you build this suit so you could try and kill yourself." Rebecca raised her voice again, taking long strides over to him.

Tony held his hands up again and nodded his head. "Explain, yeah, I can do that, just...calm down a little." he looked up at her. "Like I said, let me talk." Rebecca rolled her eyes, frustrated, and pulled a chair over to sit by the bench, resting her arms on the metal.

"Okay then, _explain_, because I want to know."

Tony ran his hand over his face, taking a long sigh before he sat back in his chair. "I found them. The terrorists...the ones that attacked me, held me captive. I found them." he looked over at the shattered glass where the walls had been, a result of his earlier tests with the repulsers mixed with his rage. "There was a report on the news about a group, The Ten Rings, terrorizing villages. One the villages they destroyed was, uh, the home of a man I knew, the man who gave me this." he tapped his fingers on the arc reactor within his chest. "And I knew where to find them."

Rebecca took a long pause to let the information sink in, to fully understand the situation. She had so many mixed feelings. Guilt, from accusing her dad of taking some pointless joyride to mess with the military. Anger, for these terrorists that were still causing her dad grief no matter how far the distance between them. The feeling that really took over her though, was fear, as she realized what this suit was made for. It was her dad's redemption, his revenge, his only way he could find justice. All she could think was that if this was his first attempt, she could've even imagine what else he had planned to do.

"What did you do?" she asked, her voice soft and worried.

Tony gave her a knowing look, and she lowered her gaze down to the floor, knowing what it meant. "Its the only way I know they can't get to us."

Rebecca looked back up. "Us?" she asked. "Why would they want to get to us?"

"They know who I am, Bec, everyone does. My company makes weapons that allow them to kill innocent people. When I stop the shipments to them and cut all ties, they'll find a way to get to me again, and I can't risk them getting to you too, or Pepper. I won't let that happen, so I took care of it." he shrugged his shoulders slightly, but his face remained blank.

Rebecca nodded slowly. "We can't trust Obadiah anymore, can we?"

Tony shook his head, his expression changing. "No, I don't trust him at all right now. I need to stop what he's doing."

"How? How can you stop this when you've been shut out by your own company?" Rebecca asked, trying not make her words come across bitter. "They listen to Obadiah, they do whatever he says."

"I know, but this is my company and I'll do whatever it takes to stop any involvement with those terrorists." Tony said confidently.

"I'll do it. What do you need me to do?" Rebecca volunteered, determined.

Tony shook his head. "No. I don't want you going back to Stark Industries, you got that?" he asked seriously. "I have no idea what Obadiah's got going on, I'm not throwing you into it."

"I _know_ what I'm doing, dad. I can get what you need from the systems." she spoke firmly.

"No." Tony looked at her with a serious expression, staring straight into her eyes. "Don't go there. Don't even speak to Obadiah, okay? Let's just...focus on other things."

Rebecca sighed. "Like what? You're hidden agenda for this suit? The fact that I helped you build your potential death?"

Tony stood from his chair and walked over to the top half of the suit that was on a stand over in the middle of the room. "I didn't know what I was going to do with it. I didn't plan to find them so easily, but I needed to do it. I did what I had to to keep you safe, and I'm not gonna apologize for that." Tony picked up a screwdriver and began to pull at the loose metal.

"I'm not asking for an apology." she shook her head, standing from her seat. "Don't you realize I've been trying to help you? From this suit to the company, all I've been doing is trying to help you, and it's so hard to try when you can't tell me anything. I'm not a kid, I've told you that a _thousand_ times, I don't need you to sugar coat everything for me, I can handle whatever it is. Trust me, I made it three months going through absolute _hell _okay, I can take wherever is going on_ now_."

Tony still continued to work on the upper half of the metal as Rebecca spoke, but he had no idea what he was doing considering his mind was processing every word she said. Just as he sat the tool down, he turned to her, but was already out the door, her feet only just visible as they climbed the stairs. Tony kicked the desk he stood by, angry at everything that was going on. All he wanted to do was take care of his daughter, to keep her safe, and all the while he had been ignoring everything she was trying so hard to be.

* * *

Rebecca glanced over at the clock by her bedside and groaned at the time. It was 5.00am and she still hadn't settled into a sleep yet, still wide awake from her mind refusing to back down. There was no way she was going to let her dad do this by himself. Apart from Pepper, Rebecca was the only one who had full access to the company's head offices where the exportation files would be stored in the system. From from Christine Everhart had told her, those seemed like the files he would need. It was frustrating being treated like such a child, she was tired of it. She would get the files herself, she knew exactly how to and it wouldn't even be traceable if she needed to hack into anything, it would be so easy. Obadiah had barely any idea when it came to computer security, he just relied on Tony's technology to keep everything safe, but Rebecca knew all the codes for all sorts of firewalls within the company, all she needed to do was get into the headquarter's offices.

* * *

Rebecca walked out into the kitchen to see a plate of what she assumed to be breakfast sitting on the bench. As she walked closer, inspecting the food on the plate, she discovered it was one of her dad's attempts of breakfast. He had never been a good cook, always relying on some other form of dinner or another way to provide a home cooked meal, and this was definitely proof of his lacking skill.

"Uh...breakfast?" she asked suspiciously as Tony had his back turned, attention on the pan on top of the stove.

"It was an omelette, but then I decided on scrambled egg, but then I changed my mind to omelette again." he explained as the smoke rose from whatever else had had cooked in the other pan.

"Well...thanks." Rebecca spoke from her seat as she poked the food with her fork.

Although Tony didn't say it, this was his way of saying sorry. He didn't want to cause any more problems by bringing up the situation of the suit any more than necessary, so instead he resorted to other measures.

"Bacon?" he held the pan in front of her as he offered. It was clear that it was over-cooked and slightly encrusted in what may have been charcoal as a result.

"Yeah, sure." Rebecca held her plate out for the bacon to be placed on. She wasn't looking forward to eating her 'breakfast' this morning, but she knew her dad was doing his best, so she endured it. "What's the occasion?"

Tony shrugged his shoulders as he turned off the stove, removing the pans from their burning position. "Just felt like it."

Rebecca nodded along, giving him a smile as she continued digging through her food, trying to find a starting point. As she looked over at her dad to see if he was testing out his cooking as well, she soon realized the bruises that were on his forehead. Looking further, she noticed them on his wrists as well, and she have a disapproving look.

"I thought that metal was impenetrable." she commented.

Tony looked down at his own wrists as he casually leant against the kitchen bench. "Kept the bullets out." he joked, but then took note of Rebecca's unimpressed look. "Just needs a little upgrade, a few more thin layers will do."

"Uh huh." Rebecca nodded. "And I guess the best time to test that out was when you were being shot at."

Tony gave a sarcastic grin. "Yeah, okay I think we've established that whole 'bad idea to be flying around the military' thing."

Rebecca was about to comment further when the sound of heels on the tiles came closer down the hall. Both of them discontinued their conversation about the suit and Tony turned back to the pans just as Pepper walked into the room.

"Ah, everyone's awake for once, and _before_ eleven." Pepper remarked as she sat her folder down on the bench, scrunching her nose at the smell she caught. "Is something burning?"

Rebecca looked up at her with pleading eyes as if to warn her what was going on, but it was too late.

"Breakfast, Ms. Potts?" Tony glided a plate across the smooth bench with just enough force for it to stop in front of Pepper.

"Oh my," Pepper gasped as she caught sight of the mess on her plate. The bacon resembled burnt jerky while the eggs were barely identifiable. "What's the occasion?" Pepper looked around.

"No occasion." Tony looked at her innocently.

Pepper looked down at Rebecca with a knowing look and took a seat next to her. Neither of them wanted to hurt his feelings regarding his terrible cooking, so they sat together quietly as they fiddled with their forks, trying to make it look like they had in fact ate some of the food. Their secretiveness didn't last long though when Tony turned around the face them and saw that they both had a bit of food on their fork, and they knew one of them had to take a bite soon.

"Mmm." Rebecca smiled as she chewed on a piece of bacon, ignoring the hollowness of the burnt parts being crushed against her teeth.

Tony seemed pleased with what he believed to be a successful attempt at breakfast and began making a coffee, turning his back long enough for Rebecca to quickly gulp down her glass of juice, washing away the taste of the food she'd eaten as Pepper pulled a face, swallowing a mouthful of the egg mash-up.

* * *

**Hey guys, hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'm trying not to rush things considering I have a lot of ideas for the following chapters, but I hope you're all still enjoying it. If you have any particular scenes you'd like to read or want me to focus more on, just let me know. Thanks for reading, and please continue the reviews so I know you guys are still enjoying it! **


	18. Chapter 18

Rebecca didn't have to worry about her dad taking off in the suit and almost getting into another game of cat and mouse with the military all day due to Pepper's insistence that he sort through the folder she had brought along with her. Pepper knew Tony was in a cheery mood that morning after experiencing his cooking, and so she decided to take advantage of that.

"This _whole_ thing? You actually read _all_ of this?" Tony held up the folder horizontally, inspecting the width of the papers inside. He groaned like a child and threw himself back onto the couch. "Does this need to be done today?"

"No." Pepper shook her head as Tony went to sit back up. "It needed to be done _yesterday_, but you decided to take off god knows where."

Tony didn't press that issue any further, instead he just pulled an unimpressed face as Pepper sat the folder back onto his lap. By the look of it, it was going to take hours to even make progress on this thing, and Pepper made it clear she wasn't going to let me wander off without doing at least some of it.

This left time for Rebecca to head downstairs to the workshop, undetected by Tony, and find out what was needed from Stark Industries for confirmation. It was pretty obvious that the recent shipping files needed to be retrieved, along with the international exports file, but she needed to make sure.

"Jarvis, has there been any attempt at gaining access to the Stark Industries computer network in head offices?" she asked when she took a seat on at Tony's desk.

"Not that I am aware of Miss. Stark."

"Of course not." Rebecca rolled her eyes at the answer she had been expecting. Gaining access to Stark Industries was way too easy, especially for the man who owned it and created the security systems himself. The files needed to be taken from the office themselves, otherwise Tony would have them by now. There was nothing Rebecca could do while she was here, but she didn't intend on wasting her time. She needed to snoop, find out what was going on with the Ten Rings and what Christine Everhart had been telling her about, and she was certain Tony would have the information stored. "Jarvis, let me know if my father is approaching."

"In what range would you like me to inform you, Miss. Stark?"

"A range that gives me about thirty seconds warning."

"Very well."

* * *

It had been a few hours now with Rebecca still reading and searching the files involving the Ten Rings. It hadn't taken much effort to locate them since they had been recent accessed numerous times. It had the photos of the terrorists near large boxes with 'Stark Industries' written across the side, hard to miss. She assumed these were the photos he was told about, the same ones that Tony had confronted Obadiah with.

"Mr. Stark is approaching." Jarvis informed.

Rebecca immediately dismissed all of the files and deleted the recent activity, it wasn't as if Tony would be mad about her going through them, but she needed to keep her knowledge of them as basic as she could. She walked over to the remaining pieces of the suit on the bench and began inspecting them.

"How long have you been down here?" Tony's voice came from over at the door.

Rebecca shrugged her shoulders and turned to him. "A while." She picked up the layers of metal that surrounded the chest piece of the suit and looked at the thickness. "If you add any more layers to this it's gonna increase weight on the arc reactor."

Tony nodded in agreement and walked over. "I've been working on the different types of titanium I could use to enhance the resistance but keep the overall weight down."

"Just outline the metal with the titanium guard, less weight and harder to get through."

Rebecca set to work on separating the chest piece, making incisions to pull apart different layers of metal while Tony welded the new layers on the piece she gave him. Now that Rebecca knew what her dad was planning on using the suit for, however she didn't exactly like the idea of him almost being blown up, she now knew what the suit would need. Reinforced metal surroundings with titanium guards, enhanced backup power for the repulsers and flight stabilizers, and most of all, ammunition. The bullets that were already stored in the suit were powerful, but they needed some sort of reloading system so that a range of ammunition could be used instead of the same type. She set up different explosive bullets as well as miniaturized missiles that could be used in combat, similar to those that Tony had already set up in the suit which had helped him when coming face to face with the terrorists. These would be more powerful and have a detection function which enabled them to activate when in contact with the target.

"Where'd you get these ones?" Tony asked when he observed the miniaturized missiles.

"You made those," she gave him a confused look. "don't you recognize them?"

"They're different."

"Oh, right. I added a few things to them, not that there was anything wrong with them." she smirked.

"Yeah, right," Tony laughed and turned back to the metal he was working on welding.

* * *

Pepper walked downstairs when it got closer to the late afternoon, and she was met with a sight she had seen in the workshop for many years. On one side of the bench was Tony, working away intensely, staring at whatever was in front of him, and on the other side was Rebecca who mirrored exactly what her father was doing.

"There's food upstairs, just delivered." Pepper walked into the room and announced, but was met with silence. "Hello?" Pepper shook her head at the ignorance she was receiving, the one thing that annoyed her when they both were at work like this. "Am I invisible? Hey!" she raised her voice and enjoyed the look of shock on their faces when they turned around and noticed she was talking to them. "Food. Upstairs. Now."

Rebecca took a deep breath and sat down whatever was in her hand. "Yep, food, coming." She stood up and rushed over to the door, keen to eat real food since the mess that was served as breakfast.

Pepper looked over to Tony who was still working away. "Tony?"

"Yeah, I'll get some later, I'm too busy." he told her, not looking up from what he was working on.

Pepper sighed and walked over to the bench. "Tony, what are you doing?" she asked worriedly. "Please don't do anything reckless." Her eyes scanned around the broken glass walls.

Tony still didn't look away from what he was doing, too engaged. "I won't, and I'm not, you don't need to worry about me."

Pepper nodded and backed down from the issue, knowing she would get nowhere with him when his mind was somewhere else at the moment. Ever since she discovered the suit, she had taken it reasonably well until she became caught up in the possibilities of what he was planning to do with it. There had been many times that Tony had used his intelligence to create something not so intelligent, but this one worried her more than the others.

"Well, I can't guarantee there'll be any left later...or now actually." she though back to Rebecca running up the stairs.

"Yeah, figured as much." he finally turned and have Pepper a smile. "I'll be up later."

* * *

When Pepper made it to the kitchen, the Thai food that she had delivered was gone from the kitchen bench. She had learnt to order more food than usual when a teenager was involved. In the living room, Rebecca sat on the floor with her back against the couch, using the small coffee table in the middle as a dining table as she ate her food.

"Don't worry, I didn't eat all of it." Rebecca mumbled with a mouthful of food.

"Well, it wouldn't have surprised me." Pepper laughed as she took a seat across from the table.

"I needed to make up for breakfast."

"Bec," Pepper began, watching and Rebecca turned to look at her with another mouthful. "I don't want to know what it is that your dad is doing, but I need to know if he's okay."

Rebecca looked back down away from Pepper, taking an instant dislike to the conversation. "Why wouldn't he be okay?"

"I never get involved when it comes to this sort of thing, I know he knows what he's doing, but something's wrong and I know it." Pepper's voice held concern and worry, which only made Rebecca feel even worse about having to keep things from her. "I brought up the fact he had to meet with Obadiah soon to discuss the company stocks, and he just gave up on any more work and left."

"I think he just wants to be back in control again. Obadiah's been running the company for him for a while now, and it's probably really getting to him." Rebecca explained in a way that she wasn't forced to lie since that was in fact true.

Pepper picked up a plate and began filling it with Thai food, accepting Rebecca's explanation. She didn't like asking her for information, especially about her dad since Pepper knew if anything was going on she wouldn't say. Rebecca reached for the remote and switched on the television, trying to fix the uncomfortable silence they had fallen into.

"How did your day go yesterday, with Rhodey?" Pepper made conversation after the television offered no interest to either of them. "Wasn't there some sort of accident with a training exercise?"

Rebecca couldn't believe the fact that all of the topics of conversation all revolved around issues she didn't particularly want to talk about.

"Yeah," she nodded, turning. "I think there was, but Rhodey said it wasn't anything extreme." Rebecca shrugged her shoulders, trying to seem as if there was nothing else going on.

Another long silence took place between them as they sat in the living room eating, no other noise apart from the clinking of their forks on the plates. Usually between Pepper and Rebecca there was no uncomfortable silences, there were no uncomfortable times at all actually, but given the tension caused by all that was going on, this particular silence wasn't the most comfortable.

"So," Pepper put her fork down. "I forgot to mention to you that I was talking with one of the board members yesterday and they told me about your little event with Lucas the other night at the fundraiser."

Rebecca played it cool, trying to act casual. "Oh, yeah, he was just following me around that night. You don't have to worry though, I won't be talking to him again, I never actually liked the guy."

Pepper shook her head. "It's not that." Rebecca raised her eyebrow. "I'm talking about the fact you assaulted him I'm a very sensitive area for males."

"Oh, god, hear me out-" Rebecca's apology was cut off.

"I just wanted to say I'm proud of you." Pepper spoke confidently, a smile on her lips. "I can only imagine what he did that caused you to do that, but I have a feeling he deserved it." Pepper laughed when she saw Rebecca nodding her head quickly. "You're just lucky no one else seen, and by no one I mean your father, because I don't think Lucas would've got off so lightly."

Rebecca's expression turned worried as she looked up at Pepper. "You're not gonna tell him are you?"

"Of course not! The last thing he needs is an assault charge," Pepper shook her head. "...or a _murder_." she said under her breath. "I just wanted to say I'm proud that you stood up for yourself."

Rebecca smiled back at Pepper's genuine pride, feeling how lucky she was to have someone like her in her life. It was moments like this that Rebecca could reassure herself she didn't need her mother, that she had a woman here who took pride in everything she did and cared about her as if she was her own, and Rebecca knew she didn't need a mother to have the perfect family. She already had the greatest dad in the world, two of the most awesome uncles and a female figure she could look up to in life in so many ways.

"Oh, and also," Pepper interrupted Rebecca's zoning out. "I really, really hope you made him cry."

* * *

Rebecca thought the house was empty when she emerged from her room the next day considering how quiet it was. There were no loud noises of welding or clattering of metal downstairs, and Pepper was nowhere in sight. Rebecca had been awake for a while, showered and had been working on trying to find a way into the Stark Industries system in order to retrieve whatever was needed. So far, there was no way she could get into the system without Tony knowing. She could easily hack into the system and take whatever she needed without a trace, but she couldn't get past her dad, not when he had Jarvis monitoring every interaction with the company lately.

Rebecca walked down the stairs to the workshop In search of anyone who might be home, but instead realized she would be interrupting a conversation that managed to catch her attention. She knelt down on the stairs to listen in, now that there were no glass walls it would be an easy task to listen in.

"This will get you access, now..."she heard Tony say, and so she knelt down further so she could see, but stayed out of sight. He handed Pepper a small USB as she stated at him in confusion to what he was asking her to do. "...if not it will be on a ghost drive."

Tony was asking Pepper to get the files from Stark Industries using his authorized USB which gained access to any file on the systems, and Rebecca let out a frustrated sigh at the fact she didn't think of searching for that device.

"Tony, you know I'd do anything for you," Pepper spoke after a bird pause, causing Rebecca to look back up at the situation. "but I cannot help you if you are going to start all of this again."

"There is _only_ this, Pepper."

Pepper lowered her gaze, giving off a look of disappointment before setting the USB back on the desk. "Well, then I can't help you."

Rebecca watched as the silence grew and she shared the uncomfortable feeling that took over the room, and then Pepper began walking toward the door, causing Rebecca to hurriedly make her way up the stairs. Her feet tripped on the top stair, resulting in her yelling out in pain as her knee went straight into the tiles.

"Shh- shh- shit!" Rebecca scrambled to her feet once again and ran into the living room to take a seat.

There were so many things Rebecca was thinking about after running up the stairs from the workshop, and she now had so much to consider. If Pepper couldn't get the files, Rebecca would, although she would just have to find a way to get that USB from her dad's desk. It would be easy enough, and now she knew exactly what to look for after listening in on Tony's instructions.

"Bec?" Pepper's voice came from beside her, startling her. "Sorry. I've just gotta go in to the company for a few hours, so if you need me just call."

"Oh, okay, yeah," Rebecca seemed surprised after thinking Pepper had declined the whole idea. "D-did you want me to come with you?"

Pepper shook her head casually. "No, no it's okay, I'm sure you've got things to do, the company's boring remember."

Rebecca have her a slight smile. "Yeah," she nodded her head slowly, thinking. "Yeah I've got a few things to do actually, might get out of the house."

"Good, this place while drive you insane." Pepper smiled. "Do you want Happy to drive you? 'Cause I can get a cab."

"No, no, no, I'll leave a little later." Rebecca told her, and then she noticed what was in Pepper's hand. The USB was clutched tightly in her palm as she gathered her things, and Rebecca thought of a quick plan. "Hold on, I'll be back in a sec okay?"

Pepper seemed to put her hands up to say no, she was in a hurry, but Rebecca was quick on her feet as she ran to her room. She searched her desk and bed for her cell phone, and frantically began dialing numbers before she connected it to her laptop. Once the call connected, she could hear Pepper's phone ringing in the kitchen as she set up a call for her to take. As Pepper answered the phone, Rebecca pulled one of her own USB's out of her desk drawer and began to make her way back to the living room.

"I've already emailed all of the information, sir." Pepper argued into the phone. "I can guarantee that." Rebecca watched closely as she sat her small handbag down and the USB right next to it, heading the to kitchen bench to scan through her folder for whatever information was in need.

Rebecca carefully walked over to Pepper's bag and slid her hand around the side to grab the USB, skillfully placing it in her pocket and replacing it with her own blank USB which was almost identical.

"Listen, the best I can do is stop by, I can't give this information over the phone." Pepper looked over to Rebecca with a frustrated look. "Yes, okay, goodbye."

"Everything okay?" Rebecca asked casually as she noticed Pepper's expression.

Pepper let out a long sigh. "Oh, just board members who are nowhere near patient. Now I have to stop by the board first and knowing them it will take _twice_ as long to sort out something that has already been decided weeks ago and shouldn't need more than a few minutes."

Rebecca felt guilty about causing Pepper this sort of stress, she hadn't thought the whole plan all the way through since it was rather spontaneous, but she needed a distraction for Pepper. Rebecca didn't want Pepper to have to deal with the fallout if she got caught in Stark Industries going through their systems, it was her job within the company on the line since Tony had been shut out, and Rebecca knew she could get everything done quickly and easily, and wouldn't have anything to lose if she got caught.

"Okay, well I'll see you later." Rebecca farewelled Pepper as she walked toward the door.

"Have a good day." Pepper called back.

By doing this, Rebecca was straight out ignoring her father's request for her not to go back to Stark Industries, but she was the only one who could get this done completely incident free, fingerprint free and untraceable. All she needed to do now was prepare herself, dress the part for a business visit and do some serious snooping on the company systems.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter and things weren't too rushed or confusing. If you guys think I should focus on certain details in the next chapter, just let me know. I appreciate you all reviewing, I love hearing what you guys think of the story so far. Thanks! **


	19. Chapter 19

Rebecca was dressed in a neat skirt and top with a cardigan as she arrived at Stark Industries. She had taken a cab there in order to avoid Happy telling Pepper where she was, or her dad. Tony was busily working away down in the workshop when she decided to leave, telling him she needed to go into a store and might look around while she was there. Usually Tony would always insist she be accompanied, pushing the fact that she was sixteen and could take care of herself out of his mind, but she had ensured him she wouldn't be long and it was 'girl stuff'. 'Girl stuff' was the warning Rebecca used whenever her dad would try to get information from her, leaving Tony surrendering and leaving the issue be.

Rebecca had instructed the driver to go around the back of the building, much to his dismay, but she gave him a large tip in return for his cooperation. With no cameras flashing busily around her or reporters yelling out to her, Rebecca easily made her way into the lobby.

"Hello Miss. Stark, wonderful to see you. Is there anything I can help you with?" The receptionist smiled politely, ignoring the man standing at the desk.

"Hi Martha, I've just got a few things to do upstairs, I'm okay." Rebecca assured her, continuing to walk toward the stairs.

The corridors were full of unfamiliar faces, but they all smiled toward her as if they had known each other. Most of the people here knew who Rebecca was after all, she had been back and forth here when she was younger with her dad, but given she hadn't had any interest in coming back here for a while, she didn't know that all of these people would still recognize her. She did remember all of the employees talking to her when she was younger, trying to make a good impression on the child's view of them, but Rebecca hardly remembered their names, just watched as the eyes following her as they walked by.

* * *

_Tony walked through the corridors of Stark Industries with a slight hunch in his back as he lowered himself to hold Rebecca's little hand. Her feet were moving as fast as they could, leading the way through the building._

_"Mr. Stark, it's good to see you back." a man came up and patted Tony on the shoulder, causing Rebecca to grasp her dads leg and hide behind him. "Oh, sorry, who's this little one?" the man put on a cute voice._

_Tony turned and picked up his young daughter, letting her hide her face under his chin from the strange man. "This is Beccy," he tried to encourage Rebecca to talk, but she was too busy trying to bury he face away. "Uh, little shy, it's her first actual visit."_

_The man nodded, watching as the little girl tried to hide herself away in the confines of her dad's arms. "Listen, I'm sorry to hear about what happened with you and Kath-"_

_"Nah, never mind that." Tony cut him off, shrugging his shoulders. "I've got more important things on my mind." Tony looked down at Rebecca, smiling at her shyness and her eager grasp on his neck. It was safe to say she was not a fan of strange people or crowds, that was for sure. "As long as I've got her, nothing else really bothers me anymore."_

_"Well, she's real lucky to have you Mr. Stark. She sure is cute." The man smiled._

_"You got that right." Tony adjusted her position she had gotten into, trying to hide away from the man. "Don't let the cuteness fool you though, one day she'll be your boss, and you'll be taking orders from her." Tony warned._

_"I'll remember that then." the man laughed as he began walking off._

_When he was out of sight, Rebecca slowly pulled her face away from being buried in her dads shirt, turning to look around them. There were people everywhere, walking fast and seriously, she didn't like it._

_"Hey, it's okay." Tony poked her on her nose, trying to lighten her spirits. "These people aren't as scary as they seem, except that one over there." he pointed toward the old man waiting at the elevator._

_Rebecca made a frown, grabbing a handful of his shirt and clenching it tightly with her fists. "I don't like these people daddy." She looked around at all of the strange faces._

_Tony nodded as he began walking them to his office, or what he had designated as his office, given he never actually used it. "Yeah, me neither Bec." he looked around the people staring at them, not familiar with the sight of Tony Stark being a father. "But how 'bout we stick together, huh? Just you and me, like always."_

_Rebecca nodded as she rest her head on his chest, laying comfortably in his arms. "Uh-huh, you and me daddy, aw-ways." she spoke softly, taking in all of the states they were receiving, their gazes glued to the two of them, and she buried her face away once again._

* * *

It hadn't been long until Rebecca found her way to Tony's office, figuring it would be the best place to access the computers undetected. She had closed the doors behind her, just in case she was interrupted. Plugging the USB stick into the computer, she input a code to search for the file she needed. It was a lot easier now that she had heard Tony tell Pepper what files would be needed, she didn't have to search everywhere for them. She spun around in the chair for a few seconds as the system searched for the file she needed, and made a slight 'bing' noise as it was successful.

"Ah, _there_ you are." Rebecca smiled as she clicked open the file.

What she had expected to find was all of the exportation records, which were right there in front of her, but what she wasn't expecting was the video she had clicked into out of curiosity from the screenshot she had seen. It was a video of a man sitting within a room of other men, but his face was covered with a material bag, as if hostage to the situation. One of the men in the video began talking in a foreign language, causing her to enable the translation application on the computer.

"_Mr. Stane..._" Rebecca heard the man say, and she sat up in the chair, all eyes focused in on the images in front of her. The video was directed toward Obadiah, but what was it doing in with the exportation files, Rebecca didn't know, so she clicked play to continue the video. "_You did not inform us that the man you hired us to kill,_" the man lifted the bag away from the man's head. "_was the great Tony Stark_."

Rebecca let out a gasp of shock and kicked her chair back in horror, propelling the chair into the glass wall behind her, thankfully not smashing with the force. The video continued to play in front of her, showing the men pushing and shoving her dad while he was forced to look into the camera. He was bloody and bruised, his clothes ripped and his face had multiple wounds all over it. Rebecca's hands clamped over her mouth as she tried to calm herself, but her heart was beating so fast in her chest that she couldn't stop herself from shaking. This was unbelievable. Obadiah, the man that was there for her and her father for as long as she could remember, was the man who organized everything that had happened. He had tried to kill Tony, and use him as bait for something, to take over this company once and for all. The video played on in front of her and she could barely peak through her fingers to watch as the men pushed Tony around once again, watching as his face was pained. She couldn't take it anymore, she couldn't watch this right now, she fumbled with her fingers for a few seconds before hitting the escape button, closing down the video just as the doors to the office swung open.

"Ah, Rebecca!" Obadiah smiled, pausing at the door as if he hadn't expected to see her. "Nice to see you in here."

Rebecca managed to smile, trying to cover up any indication of her knowing anything. "Just killing time."

Luckily, she had began moving all of the files onto the USB stick before Obadiah walked in, which made the situation less tense as she slid the USB into her pocket without Obadiah looking, too busy pouring himself a glass of bourbon.

"It's nice to see you here though, it feels like I haven't seen you in weeks." he gave her a smile.

Rebecca nodded, her lips struggling to keep a happy expression as she spoke to the man she now knew was trying to kill her father. "Yeah, it certainly does feel like a long time."

"So, what brings you here?" Obadiah stood up from his leaning position and peaked at the computer screen to see what she was up to. The screensaver hid any evidence of her search through the system, leaving Obadiah content to take a seat on the other side of the desk.

"Oh, I was in the area, thought I'd stop by and wait around in dad'a office for Pepper to pick me up. I hate going in those cabs." Rebecca pulled a face.

"I don't blame you." he laughed.

Rebecca hesitated before asking. "What are _you_ doing here?"

Obadiah took a moment to think to himself. "Well, I usually come in and just make the office look nice and tidy for when your dad comes back, whenever that may be, clean out the files that he gets delivers. It gives me comfort, coming in here, gives me hope that he'll come back just as he was before." Obadiah hung his head solemnly. "Although, he never really _did_ come back did he?"

Rebecca didn't know how to respond to that statement, and felt uncomfortable being around him when she knew what he had done. There was no this sense of fear that overwhelmed her when she was around him, she no longer know what he was capable of and didn't trust him.

"He'll be okay." she nodded.

"Well, I hope so." Obadiah nodded, swirling his drink in the glass. "You're a good kid, Rebecca, and you're dad's lucky to have you in his life. One day, when you're older, this will all be yours, and I hope I'm still around to watch you make him proud."

For a second, Rebecca could've sworn he was being genuine, but she could no longer trust a single word he said, no matter how simple those words were. Every time she looked at him now, all she could feel was anger, betrayal and hate for what he had done to her father, and what he had put him through.

"That day can't come soon enough." Rebecca spoke in a much more bitter tone than she had intended, but she didn't apologize. "I better get going, don't wanna miss my ride back home."

"Of course not." Obadiah nodded.

Maybe it was just Rebecca's extreme paranoia now, but every word he said seemed to come across as threatening or deceptive. She needed to leave, there was no way she could stand to be around him any longer knowing what she knew.

"Well, I'll see you soon." she waved to him as she walked to the door, pressing against her pocket to feel that the USB stick was still in place.

"Yeah, I hope to see you again, very soon." Obadiah watched on as she walked out the door, picking up her pace as she left the room.

Obadiah gritted his teeth angrily when she was out of sight and hurriedly pulled his phone from his pocket, dialing a number. His face was full of anger, and he knew there was something going on. He couldn't let her get back to Pepper with what she knew, or Tony for that matter.

"She's coming outside now," Obadiah informed whoever was on the other line. "Make sure you don't screw it up, she _knows_, and she can't get away."

* * *

Rebecca walked out through the lobby, noticing a familiar man sitting with the other people waiting. He looked at her for a moment before giving her a warm smile, watching as she walked past. She hurried out to the side exit, the one she had instructed to cab driver to drive around to, but she only hoped he had taken that money she had given him as enough pay off to wait for her outside.

"Great!" she yelled in frustration as she walked into the empty parking lot, no taxi in sight. "Just_ great_."

Rebecca stopped dead in her tracks as she noticed someone behind her, hidden behind the door when she had walked out. Slowly, she turned to look over at the unknown person, wondering what was going on. When she looked up, no one was there. She could've sworn there was someone standing there, she wasn't seeing things. The whole ordeal with Obadiah and the video and finding out the truth had really gotten to her and must've been messing her around with her paranoia.

"Ahh!" she squealed as she ran into something behind her. She turned to see who was standing there. "Lucas? Oh god, why the_ hell_ were you sneaking up on me? What's the matter with y-"

Rebecca's scolding was cut off as Lucas grabbed her in a head lock, dragging her back to him and taking a white handkerchief in his hand. Rebecca violently kicked her legs around and threw her arms, but Lucas had hold of her in a painful position and barely allowed enough slack to breathe as his arms wrapped around her throat. Her yelps were barely audible, but that didn't stop her from trying to let out a fierce scream.

"Take it easy, theres no point in that." he hushed her as she kicked his legs. He held his hand to her mouth, handkerchief smothering her, and waited for her fight to die out. "_There_ you go, take a nap."

Lucas kept the handkerchief to her mouth as he lowered her to the ground, making sure she was completely out. Her limp body laid out in the middle of the parking lot, unresponsive to his nudges to check if she was actually unconscious. A few moments went by before a black car pulled up beside them, a man stepping out to help put Rebecca's currently lifeless body into the trunk of the car.

"Well, for once you _didn't_ manage to screw up." Obadiah's voice came from behind Lucas. "You're not so good at the romancing, but with a little chloroform you manage to get the job done."

The back of the car closed shut, leaving Rebecca in the trunk of the car, in darkness, as Obadiah gave the driver instructions and insisted Lucas go along.

* * *

Tony sat down his tools in the right place of his workshop, cleaning up for the day before taking a seat. He'd been working all day on the new upgrades for the suit, but he felt a little disappointed that he didn't get to test them out with Rebecca since she was off doing 'girl stuff'.

"Jarvis, how's the diagnostics going?" Tony looked up from his desk.

"They should be finished any moment now, sir." Jarvis informed him. "You have an incoming call from Ms. Potts. Shall I put her through?"

Tony yawned. "Yeah, put her through."

"Very well, sir."

There was a brief pause as Tony waited for Pepper to say something, but assumed she was waiting for him. Teasingly, he left the silence be before her voice came through the monitor.

"Tony? Tony, are you there?" she asked, her voice seemed annoyed.

"Yes, Ms. Potts?" he asked in his usual cool tone.

"These damn board members, I swear, I'm sick of them." she vented. "I've been here for over an hour and a half, and then they tell me I wasn't even needed in the first place."

"What were you doing over there?" Tony asked, for once showing some interest in her rants of annoyance.

"They said they never received those D-238 files, even though I swear I emailed them, and I get here and they say they have no idea what I'm talking about."

Tony made a face. "Huh? No, I specifically remember sending those out. They got them, believe me."

"Yeah that's what I thought, I just wanted to make sure because this is really confidential stuff." Pepper explained. "I'm going over to Stark Industries now, I'll try to be as quick as I can."

Tony nodded, although she couldn't see, but he was lucky to have someone like her that would do this for him. "Thank you, I really need your help."

"Don't worry about it, just see if I can do it first." Pepper sighed. "Where's Bec?"

"She said she had 'girl stuff' to get to, but she hasn't been home in a while now. I don't know, you know teenagers."

"Yeah, she's probably out with some bo-...never mind." Pepper wished she hadn't said that.

"What!? She's out with a boy?"

"No, no, well I actually don't know, but she's not like that Tony, you know that. Don't go rushing to assumptions, she'll be back soon I'm sure. I have to go, I won't be long."

"Mm." Tony grimaced, now thinking of Rebecca out with some guy. The idea wouldn't be escaping his thoughts any time soon. Now, he just wanted her to come home. He as already thought of twenty questions he would ask her in order to get the information about this boy, here he lived, parents etc. He knew he was being the overbearing, crazy dad, but this was his little girl, he was allowed to sorry as much as he wanted to. "Where the hell is she?"

* * *

**So, I had this chapter ready to go with the previously updated chapter, and I thought I'd update now and then continue with the next one. Hope you enjoyed this one, and again, as usual, I hope I didn't rush through it, I have this annoying feeling that I do that a lot. Anyway, I think this chapter is the beginning of the more intense scenes that will be taking place, and I hope this chapter was effective and that you guys liked it. I can't wait to write the next one, currently in that process at the moment, but I would LOVE to hear what you guys think of this and any suggestions as to what you would like to see happen, anything! Thank you for the reviews, I appreciate every single one and I would love to hear from more of you! Anyway, sorry for rambling. Thank you!**


	20. Chapter 20

It had hit almost three and a half hours now since Rebecca had left the house, and it was safe to say Tony was starting to freak out. At first, he was under the impression she had gone out doing some sort of girls business, whatever that was, and then Pepper had accidentally put the idea in his head that she was off with some boy, which Tony had been dwelling on for quite some time now. Now, however, he was lost for an explanation. Pepper hadn't contacted him either, but he assumed she was working away on trying to get those files.

"Jarvis, track Rebecca's cell would you?" Tony called out as he stood in the workshop.

"I'm afraid the signal is far too weak, sir. The cell cannot be traced."

"What do you mean? I designed this thing to track all over the world." he stopped what he was doing. "It can't be traced?"

"Sir, the cellular device seems to be either submerged, or in some sort of tunnel at the moment and called be traced."

At that, Tony immediately went into panic mode. His breathing fastened and his mind was racing. Submerged? He didn't even want to think about that, that wasn't even a possibility to him at the moment. She was going to be fine, he tried to tell himself that to calm down, but he couldn't shake the feeling of something terrible happening.

* * *

Rebecca was coughing when she awoke over an hour later in a confined space, unaware of where she was. It was hard to breathe at first, the humidity in the small space was unbelievable. She groaned as she moved around, feeling the aches in different parts of her arms and legs. It took a few moments for her instinct to click in and she began to search whatever space she do have for some clue as to where she was. The last thing she remembered was seeing Lucas in the parking lot, and then everything went blank. Her neck hurt as she moved around, a result of the grip Lucas had on her. Her head was spinning from the chloroform wearing off, and she was sure that if there was any light whatsoever in this tiny area, she would be seeing spots or double vision. He hands ran down her pockets, feeling around for any sign to help her, and she noticed the USB had gone from her pocket. Someone had taken it, someone had searched her for anything she had on her. Her hands then quickly flew to her bra, and she threw her hand down her top. This was her best hiding spot, she knew no one would check there and she pulled out her cell phone.

"Shit!" she yelled, realising she had no signal. "No, no, no!"

Just as she held her phone up as high as the tiny area would allow her too, she felt the car move, and she knew they were still driving. To her surprise, a few minutes later she had one small bar of signal on her phone and realized they were driving into a different area. Rebecca knew she didn't have long until the signal she held was gone, so she took advantage of the moment and dialed a number. She was still lightheaded, and she wondered whether she would be able to actually talk properly since she still felt weary from the chloroform that had knocked her out.

Tony was now walking into the living room, completely on edge about where Rebecca could be. He had called Pepper, who was still in Stark Industries having trouble getting into the system with the blank USB Rebecca had swapped, and she hadn't heard from her either, and Happy hadn't seen her as well. Tony was close to getting in his suit and rummaging through the city to find her, but then the phone rang. Tony ran over to it and pulled it to his ear, desperately hoping to hear Rebecca's voice, but not the way he expected.

"He-"

"DAD! Dad!" Rebecca yelled into the phone, her breathing heavy as the oxygen In the trunk was becoming less and less, causing her to cough violently.

"Bec! Where are you? Are you okay?" Tony spoke into the phone, trying to keep a somewhat calm voice to soothe her. "Talk to me Bec, c'mon!" Tony could hear her gasps for air through the phone, and he had never been so scared before. "Bec!"

"I'm scared." she whimpered. "I don't know where I am." That was all of the indication that Tony needed to know exactly how much trouble she was in. ''Obi, it's Obi, he's behind it.''

''Listen, I'm gonna find you okay? You're gonna be okay.'' Tony tried as hard as he could to speak calmly, despite the worry and rage that surged through his body.

''I can't bre-'' That was all Rebecca got out before the phone cut off, losing signal as the car continued to drive.

''Bec! Bec!'' Tony pulled the phone away from his ear to see that the call was now disconnected. ''No, no, no, no!'' he shook the phone in anger before throwing it to the ground.

He then rushed over to the couch and searched for the other phone, quickly pressing redial before listening in closely. His legs were shaking as he sat waiting for the call to connect, absolute terror taking over his body. If something happened to her, anything so much as a bruise, he could never forgive himself for not being able to find her, and whoever was responsible would be in for it. The phone continued to ring, and that's when Tony felt a stinging, stabbing pain within his head, through his ears and it made his mind ache. He couldn't move, his whole body had gone completely numb, and he couldn't respond to the man that appeared beside him.

''Breathe,'' he instructed, leaning Tony back onto the couch, letting his arms now fall to his side. ''You remember this one, don't you?'' Obadiah took a pair of earplugs out of his ears, casually walking out in front of his. ''It's a shame the government didn't support the device. There's so many applications or short term paralysis.'' Tony's eyes glared at the man in front of him, but his body wouldn't let him do anything to respond.

_''_When I ordered the hit on you,'' Tony could feel his heart begin to beat wildly as the realization of such betrayal was revealed. ''I was worried that I was killing the golden goose.'' Obadiah leant down over Tony and held in front of him some sort of device that was a suitable size to fit around the arc reactor in his chest, and Tony felt it clamp down onto his chest, and he let out a small gasp. ''But, you see, it was just fate that you survived it, leaving one last golden egg to give.'' Obadiah then pulled at the device, effectively removing the arc reactor from Tony's chest, stringing the wires connected to it out as well. ''You really think that just because you have an idea, it_ belongs_ to you? Your father, he helped give us the atomic bomb. Now what kind of world would it be today if he was as selfish as you?''

The arc reactor, glowing with a light blue, was held out in front of Tony as he sat unresponsive on the couch. He only wished he could get himself up out of this position and throw his fist into Obadiah's face with all the strength he had in his body, but being paralysed, he had no choice but to sit and watch as the man he grew up to idolise and admire took the only device that was keeping him alive and locked it away in a briefcase.

''All because of _this_,'' Obadiah tapped the briefcase. ''all because you tried to create something safer and try to protect people, you've created a new generation of weapons that I'm going to unleash on the world. All powered by this.''

Tony felt empty without the arc reactor within his chest, he felt as if he was going to die at any moment. He didn't actually know how long he could go without the arc reactor before the shrapnel in his body successfully made it to his heart, but he was helpless, and he would just have to find out for himself as the minutes passed by.

''Pepper isn't so good at the snooping in the company, I saw her running through the corridors just as I was leaving, she must've realized your _daughter_ got to those files before she did.'' Tony closed his eyes, wishing that Rebecca would've stayed away from that place. ''Smart little girl she is, even fooled _me_ there for a second. For a while there I thought maybe, without her father around any more and a mother that didn't want anything to do with her, she might turn to_ me_ for guidance and I could lead her into making the weapons of the future. But, you had to come back, didn't you? I mean, you're Tony Stark after all, nothing ever _does_ go to plan.''

Obadiah got up from his position on the couch next to a paralysed Tony and grabbed the silver suitcase he had stored the arc reactor in. Tony knew exactly what he was going to do with it, but he had no idea how Obadiah would even know how to use it, he was more into selling the weapons rather than building them.

''It's a shame you had to involve Pepper, I would've preferred she live.'' Obadiah spoke casually as he walked away, and Tony's rage built up once again in his body, there was no way he would let Obadiah hurt Pepper. ''As for Rebecca, well, I don't think you'll be seeing her again. I only need one Stark for this mission, and I don't think you'll last for the next few hours anyway.''

If Tony didn't know better, he would've sworn his heart stopped dead in his chest at the mention of not being able to see Rebecca again. Not being able to see her face again, hear her cheeky comments, wrap his arms around her when she was upset, take care of her, there was no way he would survive if Obadiah did anything to her, he wouldn't live if she wasn't alive with him. As Obadiah left the front door, Tony tried his hardest to move his body, but it just wasn't working yet. The sonic device rendered the whole body useless, but he didn't remember for how long. All that was on his mind was Rebecca, and the fact he needed to get up and save her, he needed to, there was no other option. Rebecca and Pepper were his main priorities, he didn't even care that his life was slowing ending the longer he sat there, paralysed. He just needed to get up, he needed to get to them.

* * *

''Pepper? What's up?'' Rhodey answered his phone while he drove along the highway, making his way to Tony's.

''Rhodey! I need your help, this is serious.'' Pepper told him. ''It's Obadiah. He was the one who arranged for Tony to be taken by those terrorists, he set the whole thing up.''

''Whoa, whoa, slow down. Obadiah is behind all of this?'' Rhodey was just as shocked as everyone else. ''How is that even possible?''

''I don't have time to explain all of that right now, but he's planning to do something...terrible. Rhodey, he's got Rebecca.'' Pepper revealed. ''I'm with SHIELD agents now, we're going to find him.''

Rhodey's grip tightened on the steering wheel as he made the car go as fast it would allow. ''Where's Tony now?''

''I don't know, that's the problem. I've been calling but, nothing. I really need your help right now.''

''I'm on it, heading there now.''

''Thank you, Rhodey.''

''Keep me updated.''

Pepper put her phone back in her pocket and lead the way to the car for the agents that were following behind her. They all quickly followed her steps as she led them out into the parking lot of Stark Industries. Luckily, not long after Pepper had discovered Obadiah's betrayal and the fact that Rebecca was in trouble, she ran into Agent Phil Coulson from SHIELD, who was there to attend the meeting Pepper had scheduled. Pepper knew he was just the man to help her in this situation, and so she explained everything to him in order to find Obadiah and somehow help Rebecca.

"Where did you say he was?" Agent Coulson asked when they opened the doors to their car.

"Sector 16." Pepper nodded, confident in her answer. "I've never been there, I don't know what to expect."

"You said he wants to build a suit, a weapon." Coulson cleared up. "This might be where it is. In that case, it's the perfect location to arrest him. We'll have evidence then, but given the circumstances so far, I'm not sure that the police will be any help, this is more...our department."

* * *

After her call to Tony had disconnected without even explaining anything, Rebecca had passed out from the lack of oxygen in the trunk of the car and her breathing was strained. She didn't know how long she was out for before the door was lifted and she finally received a clean breath of fresh air. Her throat let out a raspy noise as she gasped for the air, taking in as much as she could. Her hair was matted to her forehead from sweating in the confined space, and she tried to gain enough strength to move toward the door opening.

"You're awake." Lucas observed, standing in front of her, expressionless.

Rebecca now had a new found feeling of hatred against this boy, but she still held no fear for him. She knew he was simply following orders, he had to be, this whole plot was far too complex for his mind to bear. She threw her arms out of the trunk and pulled herself up.

"What's next...huh?" she asked uneasily, still gaining her breathing back. "Tie me up and throw me off a bridge?"

Lucas rolled his eyes. "Not exactly." he began to take her arms in his hands and pull her up, letting her lean against the back of the car. "This could have gone so much easier, painless, simple. But of course, I never was a catch to you, was I?"

Rebecca coughed a few more times, her throat dry. "No, you aren't, and now you're Obadiah's bitch, following his orders I bet, all for what?" she asked. "He's not going to give you anything, you're insanely stupid if you think that will happen. He's only using you." Rebecca stood up straight and could feel blood running from her leg, leaving a slight pool on the concrete. She must've kicked something sharp, unless it happened while the car was driving.

"I know that." he chuckled. "I didn't agree to this months ago in order to get anything from it."

"Months ago?" she couldn't stop herself from repeating, holding her hand over the cut on her leg.

"Yeah, _months_ ago." Lucas nodded. "I knew about your dad's kidnapping before those terrorists even did." he spoke proudly. "If only they did their job _right_ and killed him when they were supposed to, we wouldn't have to waste time on this little side project."

Rebecca used all the strength her had to bring her fist up into his jaw, and heard a disgusting click as she hit his nose instead, still satisfied that she hit him somewhere.

"Scum!" she gritted through her teeth.

"You...bitch!" he held his nose as the blood ran down from his nostrils, an obvious break.

Lucas whipped his other arm around then, catching her as her exhaustion rendered her helpless, and pushed with enough force to knock her head with a thud against the back of the car. Rebecca's body then slid down to the ground slowly as her consciousness faded once again at the hands of Lucas.

"What's going on?" Another man, the driver, walked up to Lucas who was still holding his head back as the blood flowed, and glanced over at Rebecca's body on the ground. "You were supposed to take her inside, that's what _he_ wanted you to do."

Lucas groaned. "Yeah, well, slight change of plans. _You_ take her inside, I'm sure she'll be no hassle now."

The man shook his head at the boy, understanding now Obadiah's previous words that he was unable to do anything right. He leant down and took Rebecca in his arms, lifting her up off of the ground and walking in through the building doors. He looked around each corner he turned until he reached a room with a yellow door, a sign on it simply saying "_Sector 16._" The man already had his phone in his hand, and now dialed a number.

"I'm here, I've got her." he spoke briefly.

In a matter of seconds, Obadiah opened the door and instructed for him to come in.

"She still out? Boy, that chloroform sure is strong." Obadiah observed as he sat Rebecca down in a chair, but her body slumped over on one side.

"Uh, no, not exactly. The boy couldn't control his anger, she took a pretty hard knock to the head, and out she went." he explained. "But I guess, she _did_ break his nose."

Obadiah chuckled. "Well, he had that coming for sure. Have you got the weapons?"

The man held out a hiking bag, packed and heavy. "Right here."

"Good." Obadiah nodded, turning back to his computer. "I'll need them."

* * *

**...I really hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! There'll be more of this is the next chapter plus Iron Man coming into it. At this point Rebecca is taken to the same place were Obadiah has the Iron Monger suit, just to clear things up for those who haven't actually seen the movie, and that will all be explained next chapter anyway. Hopefully you guys continue to read this story, 'cause I'm pretty excited about writing the next ones. Please leave a review, I really appreciate it, I love hearing what you guys think and anything you want to see in the following chapters. Thanks for reading! **

**Oh also, in response to a review I got- no I don't plan on any rape going on in this story, just thought I'd clear that up now. **


	21. Chapter 21

Rebecca's eyes fluttered open, revealing a dark room that she had no recollection of entering. Her head was pounding with a headache, definitely concussed from the impact she had endured. She looked around the unfamiliar room, trying to gain some knowledge as to where she was. Her hand flew to her pocket where she had last left her phone, excel it was gone, probably falling out of we pocket as he climbed out of the trunk of the car .

"You weren't out long." Obadiah's voice came from across the room, and at first Rebecca couldn't even see him.

Rebecca's fear returned, stronger than ever, as she watched the man she used to trust walk over to her.

"Now, time to work." he instructed, signaling for her to get up. Rebecca stayed where she was, ignoring his requests. "Get up." It took a few more shouts for Rebecca to finally stand from her position and follow him over to the desk he had been working at.

Rebecca looked around the desk, confused as to what he wanted her to do. "What?"

"I know your dad didn't build that suit himself," Obadiah folded his arms. "I know he had some help, from you."

Rebecca knew Obadiah knew about the suit, she had caught a glimpse of the Mark I suit in amongst the files, but she shouldn't have been surprised that he wanted to do something with that information.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Rebecca shrugged.

Obadiah chuckled. "I might be an old man, Beccy, but I'm not _that_ stupid."

"Could've fooled me." she looked up at him. "And don't call be Beccy."

Obadiah's expression changed to a more serious one, readjusting his arms over his chest in an intimidating position. "I don't particularly care about being polite to you anymore. You're a stubborn child, like your father, and just don't know when to let go. Do you know how much I had to put up with in that company because you wouldn't just hand over your dad's position? Weeks and weeks of manufacturing was just shut down, are you aware of how much money you cost me?" Obadiah asked, but didn't give her any time to answer. "Ever since you were born I knew you'd somehow get in my way some day, and here we are. I dreaded the day you're dad first showed you the weapons manufacturing, I knew you'd somehow take an interest in it, and manage to screw up all my plans. It's one thing to try and get rid of your dad, and then I had to get rid of you too."

Rebecca shook her head. "Well what are you waiting for? Did you plan all of this out just so you could explain it all to me at the end? Go on, get_ rid_ of me." she encouraged. "Do it!"

Obadiah watched on as she screamed at him, grinding his teeth with anger. "I can't say I'm not tempted," he pulled out a gun from his back pocket, looking over it, trying to scare Rebecca. "But I could use your help right now."

"You may as well shoot me, I'm not helping you." she threw her arms to her side.

It wasn't the gun that frightened her, she grew up around these weapons and she knew exactly what they did, but what frightened her was the fact that she had lost all knowledge of Obadiah's mentality. She had no idea what he was capable of anymore.

"I think you will." Obadiah have her a warning look. "A gunshot doesn't have to kill you, but it sure as hell would hurt a lot."

Rebecca called his bluff once again, pushing the boundaries of his control. "You're right it would, but I'm still not helping you."

"No?" Obadiah pulled a device out of the drawer, and he immediately recognized what it was. A detonator. "Well, that puts the beloved Ms. Potts in quite a position, doesn't it?" Rebecca didn't say anything, thinking he had finally found something to bargain with. "I've got these wired up to her car now, and if I were to guess, I'd say she'd be in it right now. It only takes a press...of...the..." Obadiah's finger went to true red circle in the middle.

Rebecca didn't care if she got shot, she didn't care if she would writhe in pain as a bullet lodged itself in her abdomen or knee, but she did care about something happening to Pepper. Knowing she was the only one who could keep her safe, the only one at this very moment who could save her life, that was what got to her.

"Don't!" she yelled as his finger hovered over the button. "What do you want? I'll help, tell me what to do."

* * *

Rhodey rushed through the front door of the Stark household, not bothering to close it behind him as he ran through to the living room. It had taken him longer to get to Tony's house than he had expected thanks to the highway detours, but he had managed to use his authority as a military man to get through quicker.

"Tony!" he called out in concern. "Man, where are you?"

Rhodey's feet picked up the pace as he ran upstairs to the bedrooms, but he still didn't manage to find Tony. The rooms were all empty with no sign of Tony even being in them for a while. Rhodey continued to call out, and had no reply. Then his mind clicked, and he felt almost stupid that he hadn't gone there first, the workshop. That was where he always was, no matter what hour of the day, if he couldn't be found in the house, that's where he'd be.

"Tony!" Rhodey yelled as he stepped through where the glass walls once were. As he continued through the room, he spotted Tony on the ground by his desk, and he didn't look good. "Tony!" Rhodey clawed his arms underneath Tony and helped him up as easily as he could, but he still had no response. "Hey! Tony!" he hit across his face, finally getting a gasp of life from the man.

Tony's face was sickly pale, and there were bloodstains from his ears trickled down his neck. His veins were clear on his face, as if he had been suffocated. The glass cube that Pepper had brought him, which contained the first arc reactor from his kidnapping, was smashed out onto the floor. He no longer had a hole in his chest, instead the first arc reactor glowed within the metal circle in his chest, keeping him alive.

"Where are they?" Tony grasped Rhodey's collar, pleading. "Where's Bec? Pepper?"

Rhodey helped Tony sit up straight. "Pepper's fine, she's with special agents, they're going to arrest Obadiah."

Tony gave him a look of grave concern when there was no mention of Rebecca. "Where's Bec?"

Rhodey sighed, lowering his gaze. "We don't know...she's been taken."

"No," Tony whimpered. "No, no, no, not Beccy!" his hands clenched the metal desk and Rhodey helped him to his feet. "I gotta find her, I gotta get her back."

"Look at yourself, you can't go out in your condition-''

"I am not sitting around here while she's out there! Like hell I will! That's my daughter, and I'll be damned if I'm not the one bringing her home." Tony almost shouted, well in fact he did, but his voice lowered at the end of his words. "I swear, if I find them...who done this...who took her, I'm going to..." his voice trailed off, but Rhodey understood what he was getting at, and it pained him to see his best friend so shattered by the very thought of losing his daughter, his heart ached at the sight of the man he always knew to be so strong.

"I get it Tony, and I understand, this is _your_ job, she's your little girl, I just don't want you passing out or dying before you get to her." Rhodey nodded, still helping Tony over to the middle of his workshop. "You just...you look like crap."

Tony scoffed. "Yeah, well, that's better than the way I'm feeling."

Rhodey helped Tony get his suit ready, even though he had no idea what he was doing, he just followed Tony's instructions and jumped at all of the robotics that made their way up from the floor. Tony stood in the centre of whatever was being created, and soon enough the suit was assembling itself around him and attaching.

"That is the coolest thing I've ever seen." Rhodey gawked at the red and gold suit.

"Not bad, huh." Tony smiled before his expression changed completely. He kept shaking his head, and he squinted his eyes shut. "If anything's happened to her...I-I don't know what I'll do, I honestly don't."

Rhodey didn't know what to say, he knew how dangerous the situation was and he had no clue himself as to whether she would be alright. "Just find her. I'm gonna follow up with Pepper and search as well. Is there anything you need me to do?"

Tony walked over to the clearing in his workshop, blasting one of his battered cars out of the way, and stood below that same hole in the roof he had been using for exits and entrances.

"Just keep the skies clear."

With that, Tony flew off into the skies above the city, heading straight for his first hunch.

* * *

Rebecca's face was covered in oil as she ducked her head back under the monstrous metal suit that Obadiah had created. He needed her to set up all the attachments and connect the arc reactor to all of the components. She didn't want to do it, she knew what he would use it for, but it was the only way she could save Pepper and her father. If anything happened to them, well, she didn't even want to let her mind consider that possibility. It hadn't been long that she was working on it, but it felt like hours, she needed to do something.

"This isn't right." she muttered loud enough for Obadiah, who was working on the computer, to hear. "Won't work." she muttered again, the metal of her tools clanging against the outer suit. "Nope, no way."

Obadiah dropped his gaze from the computer screen. "What are you talking about?"

"You wouldn't have a clue what I'm talking about." she pushed herself out from underneath the suit. "See these little wires?" she held them up, talking slowly as to insult his intelligence. "They won't work. They haven't got the capacity that the arc reactor requires to run the power to the components. You do know how powerful that thing is, right? It's pretty obvious."

Obadiah let out a frustrated sigh and walked over. "Show me."

Rebecca stood up, gesturing a had for under the suit. "By all means."

Obadiah glared at we before bending down and ducking his head below the suit, looking around in the area Rebecca was talking about. He must've found it since he pulled out a screwdriver and took the matters into his owns hands. Rebecca took a few careful steps back, sure to not make any recognizable sound as she made her way over to the desk.

On the top of some files lay the hand gun, and she found the detonator as well, hiding it within another drawer in case Obadiah felt the need to press it. Quietly, she lifted the gun, glancing over her shoulder to make sure Obadiah was still otherwise engaged, and gently lifted it back to check it was loaded. Once that had been taken care of, she held the gun firmly within her grip and held it to Obadiah's back, waiting for him to turn around. Hopefully, someone would show up in time for no one to get seriously injured.

"Just what do you think you're doing with that?" Obadiah's cold voice brought her back from her thoughts, all her focus now on him.

"I like to pretend I know what I'm doing." she answered, keeping her eyes on him as he stood up straight.

"You're not gonna shoot me." he chuckled.

"Probably not, but it's always fun to play around with the idea." she shrugged her shoulders. "Besides, an eye for an eye, right?"

Obadiah smiled, nodding his he's at her attitude. "Oh wow, it's crazy how much you sound like your father when you're trying to be tough. All it does is come across cocky, and no ones gonna take you seriously."

Rebecca pulled off the safety on the gun as he stepped closer. "Maybe that's what I'm going for."

Obadiah moved swiftly to the side of the room, keeping his eye on Rebecca as she kept her eyes on him. It was obvious she wasn't fling to shoot, she was trying to threaten him, but he as worked far too long on this plan for the tables to be turned on him by a sixteen year old girl. In a movement that Rebecca didn't even have time to react to, Obadiah pulled out an even smaller hang gun and shot it straight toward her. It hit Rebecca's knee, causing her to fall backward onto her back.

"Ahh!" she screamed out. Her movements on the ground proving just how much the pain was affecting her. She honestly didn't think he would be so low as to actually shoot her, but this was a testament to just how crazy Obadiah had gotten. At least it wasn't her chest, at least it was only her knee.

"I told you, it sure would hurt." Obadiah walked over, kicking the gun from her hand. "Don't ever think that you're ready to hold a gun to me."

Rebecca bit down on her lip as she held in her groans of pain, not wanting to show Obadiah how much he had hurt her. She tried to get up, but she just couldn't, a mixture of pain and exhaustion. As she held back her cries, there was an obvious sound of running footsteps coming through the outer corridor, people approaching the sector. Obadiah's face mirrored the panic he was feeling and he walked over to the suit, clicking a button to begin getting it ready for use.

"You're going to get what you deserve." Rebecca spat at him, stopping him in his tracks and causing him to walk over.

He leant down beside her, putting to small blue earplugs in each side. Then, he took out a small device and clicked it upwards, letting out a brain splitting noise that rendered Rebecca completely paralyses, her whole body going limp and her skin fading to a pale, almost white complexion as she felt her head was going to explode. Her hands fell from her knee as her body went dead still, letting the blood flow freely now from her ghastly wound.

Obadiah pulled the earplugs away and three them onto the desk along with the device. He had done the same thing to Rebecca as he had to Tony in order for him to get into the suit. He didn't. Red Rebecca wailing on the floor screaming as whoever it was came in looking for her or Obadiah. This way, she would have no choice but to sit behind the desk, undetected, and completely paralyzed.

"I don't think so Beccy. You see, right now, your dad's wasting away on the living room couch, that little arc reactor over there, I took it straight from his chest. I don't think he's got long, if he's made it this far at least, so don't expect your daddy to come and save you this time."

Obadiah then moved away quickly, making his way to the suit to get ready. Rebecca wanted to cry so badly, and that was about all she could do in her condition, so the tears began to wet her cheeks. Obadiah had ripped Tony's life away from him, and was about to tear apart Pepper's, and there Rebecca was on the floor, useless, and bleeding heavily from her knee. She just hoped with every inch of faith she had in her, however limited it was, that her dad was still alive, and that somehow he would be there. Somehow.

* * *

Pepper walked as fast as she could through the many corridors this place offered, glancing at each door in search of Sector 16. The gents followed swiftly behind her, trusting her guidance through the building.

"Ah, _Sector 16_." Pepper pointed frantically, and then rushed over to the door. She pulled out her pass key, which gave her access to any door in this building, but somehow it wouldn't work. She continue to swipe it, but the door just wouldn't accept the key. "My key's not working, we can't get in!" she spoke, panicked.

Agent Coulson turned to the other agents and nodded, stepping over to the door to place a small device onto it.

"Oh, what is it? It that some sort of...device that's gonna unlock to door, like a lock picker?" Pepper wondered.

"You may want to step back." Coulson advised, gesturing for her to stand in front of them as they turned their backs to the door.

A few seconds later, a tiny explosion was heard, and when Pepper turned around she could see the door swinging open through a cloud of smoke.

She followed the agents down the stairs, letting them take the lead now they were close, and they pulled their guns out at the ready when they reached the final door. When they walked through, the room was so dark they couldn't see properly, but the computer screen in the middle of the room assisted them, barely.

"Oh my god," Pepper breathed as she looked over at the metal scraps that were out together to form a suit.

"Well, you were right, he was making a suit." Coulson stated.

"I thought it would be bigger." Pepper mused, looking over the small suit.

As the agents continued searching the room, Pepper walked over to the clearing that held hanging chains, sensing something off about the areas due to the small clinging of metal he kept hearing. The darkness of the room hid Rebecca's presence, and the device that had caused her short-term paralysis stopped her from being able to move or even talk to let them know where she was.

Pepper moved in closer, staring at something as it was glowing, and slowly realized what it was. She had helped Tony replace his arc reactor not long after his return, and although that was a terrifying ordeal for her, she could recognize what it was anywhere. The glow because closer, and he realized what she was standing in front of.

"_Oh my god_!"

* * *

**Eeeeek, I'm so sorry if this isn't a very good chapter, I had lots that I wanted to write and there was so many things I wanted to get out there. Obviously, I've made Obadiah a much more darker character than the movie, a bit more cold and heartless as you can tell. I know there hasn't been much Tony/Iron Man in this chapter or the last, but I promise there will be next chapter. I just wanted to create what was happening for the whole time Tony was still paralysed, so I needed theses chapters to do so. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I didn't disappoint. Please continue the reviews, I really do enjoy reading them and hearing your thoughts on the story, so thank you all very much! **


	22. Chapter 22

Pepper took a few steps back instinctively as the huge metal man approached her. It was like a giant, it towered over her, leaving her a shadowing wake of fear. She was speechless, she couldn't form a sentence, there was so much going on.

"Ms. Potts!" Agent Coulson's voice was clear from across the room. "Ms. Potts, step aside!"

Pepper's legs took a few moments to respond to her body's request, but she soon made it out of the way for the agents to send a wave of bullets in the metal suit's direction. It was no good though, the metal was obviously too strong, even the weaker points. They knew it was Obadiah in the suit, the plans they had found in his file had clearly shown his plans to recreate the one he took from the Ten Rings, who had previously scoured the desert to find the remains of Tony's first suit.

The large hand on the suit came up and pointed toward the agents. It was a threatening, terrifying action and they scrambled themselves across the room. Bullets sprayed from the end of the arm on the metal suit, a large gum barrel now obvious. Pepper screamed and ran from the bullets, watching as the agents threw themselves around the room and narrowly dodged the bullets.

"Get down! Ms. Potts, get down!" Coulson's voice boomed across the room.

Pepper crouched down low as bits of metal and pieces of the room flew about, and she hurried over to the main desk in the middle of the room, lowering herself to hide behind it. As she kneeled down on the ground, she felt her hands encounter with liquid on the ground. She flinched as she discovered the red blood that was now all over her hands, and she inclined her head to the side to find a horrifying sight.

"Bec! Oh my god!" Pepper's voice strained as she cried out in worry. "Sweetie, look at me!" she grabbed Rebecca's arm and pulled her up. "Bec!" Pepper threw her arms around her carefully, holding her close. "We've been looking everywhere for you. We should've been here, we should've found you sooner!"

Rebecca's eyes were on her, staring at her in fear, and she only wished she could talk and explain what was going on. She needed to know if her dad was okay, but her mouth wouldn't respond. Her knee had stopped bleeding so rapidly, but was still spilling over her leg, and she knew she'd die in here of he didn't find a way to overcome her paralysis.

"Oh, god!" she lifted Rebecca's leg, noticing the intensity in her eyes as she did so. "I'm sorry! Oh, god! Just..just...hold on!"

Pepper grabbed her coat off her shoulders and managed to maneuver it to tie around her leg in order to stop the blood from flowing. Rebecca's skin was pale white, and Pepper didn't know I it was from blood loss or if anything else had happened to her. She couldn't believe the state she was in, she was badly injured and wasn't responding to Pepper.

"Listen, I don't know what's going on, but I promise I'll get you out of here, okay? I promise. I won't let anything happen to you, not again." Pepper vowed. She didn't know how long she had been crouched down behind the desk, but when he peaked over, the metal man had gone, but the destruction was obvious that he hadn't gone too far. "I'm going to hate doing this, but you have to wait here. I need to go make sure he's gone so I can get you out safely. I'll be right back, I promise, just stay calm." Pepper stroked Rebecca's cheek as her eyes became watery, not wanting to leave, but it was the only way. "It'll be okay, it'll be fine."

* * *

Tony soared through the air, ignoring everything going on in the streets he was above, all eyes fixed on the map that Jarvis had programmed into his suit to show the quickest possible route.

"Jarvis, get Pepper on the phone." Tony instructed.

His concentration was back on the map in front of him. There were so many thoughts going through his head, all focusing on Rebecca and where she was. He hadn't taken Obadiah's words lightly earlier, an he wasn't going to take anymore risks. Rhodey had assured him that Pepper was okay with the agents, but Tony knew that Obadiah had gone that far that Pepper wouldn't even be safe with them.

"Tony!" Pepper's voice screeched in his ear, causing him to flinch in reaction. "Tony! Are you alright!"

"I'm fine! Are you okay?" Tony's desperate voice asked.

"I'm okay, but...but Obadiah..." Pepper's voice was strained, taking deep breaths. "He's gone insane-"

"I know, Pepper, just...where are you? Tell me you're away from him!"

"Tony, you need to get here it's Re-" Pepper's voice was cut off with another piercing scream.

"Pepper! Pepper!"

"Where do you think you're going? Your services are no longer required." Obadiah's muffled voice was heard barely over the phone as he appeared in front of Pepper.

Tony was flying over the building just as it was happening, and as he saw the arm come up to Pepper and the gun barrel appear, he launched himself as fast as he could to divert all the attention from Pepper and onto him, resulting in Tony dodging the bullet that Obadiah had fired.

"Well, I guess that _wasn't_ your last golden egg, was it?" Obadiah's voice boomed as his gun locked onto Tony once again. "You survived all that, only to come here and get yourself killed!"

Tony flew around the bullets and lowered himself to the ground. "Nice design, all yours?" he asked, walking around the large metal suit. "How original." Tony looked behind Obadiah's large figure to see that Pepper was okay, and she was standing there with a look of pure terror.

"Well I'd be lying if I said I didn't get a few hints along the way, but I think it measured up to be a big improvement to some." Obadiah stood up high above Tony, showing just how superior his suit proved to be in comparison to Tony's.

"Haven't you heard Obi? Size doesn't matter." Tony was trying to buy time, trying to figure out what Obadiah was planning to do while trying to form some sort of tactical plan.

Obadiah let out a long sigh. "Always a joker, Tony."

"Know how to fly that thing old boy?"

Obadiah moved his legs and approached Tony, walking closer to the red and gold suit. "So arrogant, you don't even see that you actually have a competition."

"Oh I can see that." Tony nodded. "Im just weighing up just how much of a competition that is, you see, size really _doesn't_ matter." Tony activated the thrust capacitors and hovered into the air a few feet off the ground. "Well, here's your chance."

Obadiah walked, following Tony as he hovered through the air. "No Tony, here's_ your_ chance."

Obadiah's large hands of the suit grabbed around Tony's and threw his straight through the concrete wall that lead out into the city, causing him to land in the middle of a highway. The rubble crowded around Tony as he settled on the ground, pushing himself up. Horns were beeping all around him and it was clear the screams from the people driving in their cars as they swerved around him.

"Hey!" Someone yelled angrily from their car. "Idiot! Get that thing off the road!" Another yell. "What do you think you're doing!"

Tony ignored them, pulling himself up off the ground completely this time and moving out of the way for vehicles. He waited for a short while, and there was no sign of Obadiah, and that's when he heard Pepper's voice.

"Tony! Tony, are you alright?" she asked worriedly.

"Are you okay?" he asked, ignoring her question. For the time being, he really didn't care about how he was, it was Pepper, and it was Rebecca, and that's all he cared about.

"I'm...I'm okay." Pepper mumbled.

"Listen, you need to get out of here, okay? Take a car, whatever is there, just take it and _go_, get as far away as possible." he instructed.

"No! No, no, no Tony you don't understand!" she yelled, and he could practically hear the tears flowing down her cheeks. "_She's_ in there. Rebecca's _in_ there!"

Tony froze up. He knew Obadiah was behind all of this, but he wasn't expecting him to bring her here. When she called, it was so far out of range he thought she was in another state or being taken in a car. He had planned to get Obadiah to a point where he could get the answers he needed to find Rebecca, but now he knew she was in the building in front of him, he was somehow even more worried than if she were across the country.

"Is she okay?" Tony asked immediately, desperation in his voice. Pepper didn't answer, she only sobbed. ''Why is she- how is she- get her out!''

"I...I don't- I mean, no, she's...she's hurt, but she won't speak. She's all...god, she's _so_ pale, and she can't m-move, and I don't-"

Then it clicked. "She's been temporarily paralyzed." Tony told her after listening to her symptoms, all I which he had been suffering over an hour ago.

"W-what!_ Paralyzed?_ Oh god!"

"It's a device." Tony explained while still scanning the area for Obadiah. "Obadiah must've used it on her, she'll be paralyzed for an hour or two, but it depends when this happened."

"Well, some of the blood is dry, so it could've been an hour ago or-"

"Blood? There's _blood_?" Tony's heart almost stopped. "I'm going in! I'm getting her out!"

"Tony!" she screamed. "No, no, no! Oh my god, Tony where are you?"

Tony looked around him, he could've swore he was only outside of the building's parking lot, but it appeared not.

"What's happening!" Tony yelled, taking long strides. "C'mon, Potts, talk to me!"

"Tony! Look out! He's coming!"

* * *

Rebecca was only just starting to feel her fingertips again when he first heard Pepper's screams outside. That was twenty minutes ago, and she knew something was wrong. She knew Pepper would've tried her hardest to get back to her quickly, but something was happening. She couldn't feel her leg yet, but just looking at it made her remember the pain. She needed to move, to get up, go out and help somehow no matter how useless her condition would render her. Obadiah really had lost his mind, and she had been there paralyzed as she watched it all unfold. The agents were strewn across the room unconscious as she had witnessed the metal suit's long arms barreling them backwards. The sounds outside hurt her more than anything, the sound of Pepper's screams, and she was stuck here motionless.

Another twenty minutes had passed by the time Rebecca had managed to move her body, but it was only slightly. She moaned and gasped as she moved her arms slowly to the desk, pulling herself up. She still didn't have the full strength or feeling in her body, and it was exhausting to move around. On the desk sat the small hand gun that Obadiah had used, and she raked it across the table and over to her.

"Shit!" she cursed, although it came out as a slur, as she discovered it was empty.

Filling it with the bullets she found in the drawers, she put the gun on safety and secured it in her pocket as her good leg pulled her up into a standing position.

"Bec!" Pepper's voice echoed from the corridor outside, and Rebecca held the desk firmly to remain standing. "Oh my god, I am so sorry!"

Rebecca shook her head as best she could. "Not...not your f-fault."

Pepper moved to Rebecca's side and grabbed her other arm, throwing it over her shoulder and supporting most of her weight as she hopped forward on one foot. Pepper had never been more scared as she held a calm composure and helped Rebecca to the first door.

"Take your time," Pepper noticed her breathlessness and pain. "Here, just take a rest."

Rebecca hopped forward again, Pepper jumping in to help her. "I'm not s-stopping." her voice was crackly, but determined.

"What happened to your leg?" Pepper had a fair idea, but she had assumed so much already.

"Bullet." Rebecca bit out, trying to hold in her cries of pain.

Pepper could see she was struggling, but she always knew just how stubborn Rebecca was, and there was no way she'd take a rest for even a moment.

"D-dad?" she turned to Pepper with a horrified look in her eyes.

Pepper soon caught on to her concerns. "He's okay, he's...okay. But, Obadiah has gone for him, I don't know where they went."

Rebecca's heart pounded in her chest with worry. Obadiah was going to kill Tony for sure. She knew that her dad's suit had way more tech and gadgets, but Obadiah was merciless now, heartless and violent, he wouldn't give up.

"Need...t-to find him." Rebecca choked out. "He's going t-to get k-killed!"

Pepper tried to search for comforting words, to somehow calm her down and focus on getting out of this building that was falling apart around them, but she didn't know what to say. She wasn't even sure for herself.

* * *

Tony flew through the air at a rapid speed, Obadiah not far behind him. He had already been thrown around numerous streets and threw a fair amount of walls. Tiny had his share of violence as well through, enjoying the sight of Obadiah when he hit his helmet around a few times, taking major effect on the systems inside. There was one rather damaging occurrence when Obadiah had lifted a car which held a woman and two children, which led Tony to bargain with him that one time so he wouldn't hurt the people inside the car, or what Obadiah had referred to as collateral damage.

"You see Tony, you can't be the best in everything!"" Obadiah called out from behind as they continued their upward spiral into the sky. "You'll have to die knowing that you've been outdone for once in your life!"

Tony ignored his taunts and continued upward through the sky, but Obadiah was trying desperately to get his attention in hopes that Tony would snap and he could finish this all now by killing him.

"Don't you want to know where you're daughter is? Do you care?" he remarked, resorting to these kind of taunts. "You'll _never_ see her again! Not if you don't end this now! That is, if she's still alive now, in which case I hope she is. Just so she can see her dad fail, once again, at trying to protect her! Just so she can watch you _die_ for good this time! And then, when that's all over," Obadiah continued and Tony couldn't help listen to his little spiel. "I'll kill _her_ as well, and there'll be no Starks, only the company, which will fall to me."

Tony whipped around, ashamed that Obadiah's words had gotten to him, but he never was one for restraint. "I really don't think there's anything you can do to make me hate you any more! So you can save your epic speech, because if you even_ flinch_ when this is all over, if you even manage to take the _smallest_ breath or I see a _flicker_ in your eye when you hit this ground, I'll kill you _all over_ again!"

Tony put all of the power that the suit had left into the thrust capacitors and sped up, but Obadiah grabbed his ankle and seemed to be going along with him. Tony kicked furiously, but with the pressure in this air and Obadiah's grip, it was useless. They went further and further into the air, and finally they hit the boundary that Tony knew Obadiah wouldn't be able to pass.

"It's over Tony!" Obadiah yelled as they're speed declined, Tony's suit losing power at the distance they were at.

"How'd you figure out the icing problem?" Tony asked in a tone that needed no proof to know he was smirking.

"Icing problem?"

Obadiah's suit was covered in a thickening later of ice, plastering all over his face and the rest is the suit, rendering it powerless and slowly deteriorating. Tony watched as Obadiah fell down through the air, enjoying the sight of his enemy falling, but the moment was short lived as he himself began to fall as a result of his power loss.

* * *

Pepper was still helping Rebecca make her way out of the building, but it was saddening at how far they had actually walked. It was hard to move quicker when Rebecca's leg was so badly injured, not to mention the blood loss and previous paralyzed state had made it difficult to even see straight after a few steps.

"You _need_ to take a rest here, just a few seconds, _no_ argument." Pepper instructed as Rebecca leaned up against the wall in the corridor. Even if Rebecca wanted to argue, there was no way she could take it.

"Need...to find...dad." she breathed out heavily.

"We will." Pepper culler her face soothingly. "But the best we can do right now is get out of here."

"Pepper!" another voice came over her Bluetooth phone. "Potts? You there?"

"Tony?" Pepper asked, relieved, and Rebecca's face lit up with hope. "Oh thank god-"

"Is she okay?" he cut in, anxious to know. ''Did you get her out? How is she?''

Pepper debated on whether or not to tell him she was actually worried about Rebecca's condition, but there would be nothing he could do, and he needed to save himself.

"Yeah, we're getting out of the building now."

"Get her out! Get her out now! She can't be in there!" Tony ordered, not meaning to sound so furious.

"We're going as fast as we can!"

Rebecca winced, feeling guilty that because of her injury and condition she was slowing them down greatly, she needed to get through this, she needed to just grit her teeth and get out.

"I need you to do something for me..." Tony began again to Pepper.

"Anything."

Rebecca watched as Pepper nodded her head determinedly, listening closely to Tony's instructions, wishing she could ear what was going on.

"Okay! Okay, Tony, be careful!"

Pepper rushed back to Rebecca and took her arm again, taking more weight than before so they could get out quicker, but this time Rebecca was almost running away on Pepper. She hopped on her leg furiously, and even limped slightly on her other, badly injure leg, just to get out of the building.

"Take it easy!" Pepper reminded her.

"No." Rebecca spoke firmly.

When they finally made it outside, Rebecca was finding it hard to breathe from her exhaustion and pain, everything was taking its toll, but she had used whatever was left in her body to get out of that building.

"Sweetie, listen to me," Pepper walked her over to the surrounding gates, letting her rest her weight on them. "I have to go back in there," Rebecca went to object, but Pepper rested her hand on her cheek. "I need to do this, it's the only way we'll be safe and we can save your dad. I promise it'll be okay, I'll be back for you, just stay here and say safe!"

Rebecca watched as Pepper left her sight, listening closely to the clinking of we heels as she ran back through the corridors. There was a brief wave of relief that courses through her body as she hears the sound of the suit's capacitors and repulsers through the air, and when she looked up he could've swore she saw re and gold flashing through the sky. Her eyes closed on her, and before she knew it, she found herself without grip on anything, completely alone in the air, an her knee that was holding her buckled beneath her, sending her down, and the next thing she experienced was the gravel road in front of her becoming closer and closer as she slipped from the tiny consciousness that she had left.

* * *

**Well, I'm not sure what I think of this chapter myself. There was so much I wanted to include and tried not to miss anything, but I will add to what has happened more next chapter as you will see. Also, expect a few flashbacks as I will elaborate on a few things that may have been previously skipped or missed, but I hope to do it justice! I really hope you guys liked this chapter, I didn't know whether to keep going on it or start the next chapter, so I decided on a different method that is hopefully effective. Anyway, please review, I really like to hear whether or not you're liking this story still and the way it's going, and it's always lovely hearing for you guys! Thanks!**


	23. Chapter 23

That repetitive beat, that second of silence in between each one, it was driving him mad. Tony hadn't slept a wink since the ordeal which had ended almost twelve hours ago, and left everyone in the wake of what had happened. Obadiah was dead, that was the main part, but it would take more than a few hours for Tony to be able to somehow move on from the fact that the man he had trusted his whole life was trying to kill him, an had completely changed his life forever.

"Here," Tony jumped at the sound of such a close voice, and he looked up to see Pepper holding a coffee out to him. "Thought you might need some caffeine since you're avoiding sleep."

Tony lifted his arm and grabbed the warm cup, wincing as a few of his muscles ached in response. "Yeah, well, sleep isn't exactly a priority right now."

"Right. But you _did_ just almost die a few times, so you might want to consider it." Pepper reminded him.

Tony took a sip of the coffee and sighed. "I'm not worried about me at the moment."

Pepper didn't say any more, instead she wrapped her hands around her own coffee cup and brought it up to her mouth.

"Agent Coulson's been calling all morning, he needs to talk with you." Pepper spoke softly. "Something about debriefing, and a story for...this."

Pepper handed over to him a newspaper that didn't take much to read the huge headlines that covered the front page. 'Who is the Iron Man?' Tony widened his eyes in surprise and then read the article, making a few comments along the way. It was out there now, no point denying anything. Tony folded up the paper and three it to the other chair beside him, ignoring the article.

"I'm not leaving here, he'll have to wait." Tony brushed off the issue.

Pepper walked over and knelt down beside him in his chair. "Tony, I know this isn't easy. A lot has happened, and a lot is going on right now, and I'm not trying to push you into this at all, but you need to know that this is a big deal, okay?" Pepper explained soothingly. "I'm here to help you, so don't think you've got to do this alone."

Tony nodded his head slightly, appreciating Pepper's words. It was times like these he knew he wouldn't get by without her. She held him together, took care of him and was always there. She was an amazing woman, one of a kind for sure, and didn't plan on letting her go.

"I know." he nodded again. "I just can't do it at the moment, not until...everything's okay."

Pepper smiled. "I understand, Tony." she put her hand on top of his for a brief moment before standing up from where she'd been crouching. She made her way over to the door and stopped to look back at Tony. "She'll be okay, you know that, right?"

"Yeah," Tony nodded, but didn't look up. "I know."

_Tony walked into the nursery in the hospital, following the nurse as she led him to his newborn daughter. He had only seen her briefly for a few minutes when he was born, there were a few complications, and now that Katherine was resting, he could go see the baby._

_"Stark, Rebecca." The nurse read on the little baby crib. She lifted the baby out and held her in her arms, making sure she was okay. "Here's your daughter, Mr. Stark."_

_Tony thought he would have problems holding her for the first time, but after all the reading up he'd done on this stage while he was preparing to be a father, it all came to him naturally now._

_"I'll leave you with her." The nurse smiled happily at the father and daughter, walking out of the room._

_Tony backed up and took a seat in the corner in one of the chairs, and he stared down at the tiny human being in his arms, reveling in the idea that she was all his. His little girl, his baby. There were no words to describe her, she was precious. She had the obviously dark brown, almost black, hair from Tony, and their eyes matched uncannily. She had her mothers nose, and the same curve in the lips, but there was no denying she was a Stark. He could highlight each and every one of her features and who they likened to more, and he knew he'd always remember this moment. The first moment he held his entire life in his own hands, his whole reason to life, his meaning._

_"You're beautiful, you know that, don't you?" Tony cooed, beaming at the sight of his daughter. "Of course you do, how could you not?" Tony played with her little fingers, marveling at how small she was. "Oh man, I sure as hell hope you like me. Great, I just said hell to my baby daughter...and I said it again." Tony rolled his eyes at his frustration with himself. He was so nervous, he couldn't help it. "Anyway, I hope you like me Rebecca, because I'm never leaving you. No matter what. Even in the teenage years, which I hear are pretty...well, difficult, but I still won't leave. I promise. I'll be there for the tantrums and the drama."_

_Tony held her closer, pressing a kiss to her forehead, and he watched her squirm around in her pale pink blanket in his giant arms, making little noises that made Tony all warm inside._

_"Who knew a little thing like you could make me cry?" Tony felt the water build up in his eyes, not even embarrassed by the tears that rolled over his cheek. "I love you so much already, just wait until you get older. I won't let anything happen to you, I promise, I'll always be there for you."_

Tony opened his eyes, looking up at his little baby girl, except she wasn't sleeping peacefully in his arms anymore. This time, he couldn't wrap her in her blanket and cuddle her to sleep, he couldn't get rid of her boo boo's, he couldn't do anything but stay there with her, and hope that she was okay as he stared at the monitors and drips. He watched the rise and fall of her chest, gaining comfort from that small movement of breath. Rebecca's leg was plastered up, bulging from under the sheet. She had broken bones and tore tendons, the doctors were unsure how long it would take to heal. The amount of blood she had lost was concerning, but she had drips connected all around her, working to bring her vitals back up to a healthy level, and so far it was going well. Underneath the oxygen tube that was in front of her nose, there were noticeable cuts and bruises which made Tony uneasy. He wasn't there for her this time, he didn't protect her.

* * *

Pepper walked outside Rebecca's room and back into the corridor were Rhodey was sitting on one of the chairs, his head tilted back on the seat and his eyes closed. He had arrived with Pepper as the ambulance took both Rebecca and Tony to hospital with Pepper insisting she was fine.

"Is she awake?" Rhodey asked, eyes still closed, but he sensed when Pepper sat down.

Pepper sipped at her coffee. "No, not yet."

"How is he?"

"A mess." Pepper sighed. "He's blaming himself, as usual. I just...if he lost her...if_ I_ lost her...or if I lost_ him_-"

"Don't do that Pepper." Rhodey opened his eyes and spread his arm out to her. "They're okay, and that's all that matters. Don't think about the other stuff, alright? You'll drive yourself insane."

Pepper let out a slight laugh. "I think we're past that point." Then she went quiet for a moment before speaking again, softer this time. "I thought I was watching him die, I really did. When they were there on the roof, and I watched him get thrown around like a rag-doll, I honestly thought I was watching him die."

Rhodey understood that feeling, he had seen many things in his career, and he understood Pepper's trauma. "It's over now." he reminded her. "Obadiah's gone, this is all over."

Pepper turned to him. "But it's not. Not now, not with this Iron Man business. It's only just beginning."

"Pepper, will you just enjoy this moment? Tony is alive. Rebecca is alive._ You're_ alive. Stop worrying, for once."

"I don't think I can stop worrying." Pepper shook her head, taking a deep breath. "What needs to be done now?"

Rhodey sat up. "Press conference, as usual, military personnel will be present...which means me. That Coulson guy, he said he could create an alibi and a story for Tony, and Obadiah, so we can all move on from this."

"Tony won't speak to him, not until Rebecca wakes up."

Rhodey nodded. "Well then we'll wait."

* * *

_Tony sat around the small fire that had been made before he had woken up, and although it didn't hurt, he could feel the arc reactor in his chest like a boulder. This would take some getting used to, and he had no choice, he had to live with it now._

_Yinsen stirred at whatever he was cooking in the small saucepan, and looked over to Tony who was watching the fire intently. They had spoken briefly since Tony awoke in the cave, only explaining the hole in his chest and it's purpose, as well as who they were._

_"You got a family?" Tony had asked, trying to give this man he didn't know a background._

_"Yes, and I will see them when this is all over." Yinsen spoke with a tone of contentment. "And you, Stark?"_

_Tony didn't answer. He wanted to tell him he had a daughter, a daughter he was missing more than light itself, but he remembered where he was. In captivity because of who he was, because of being a Stark. If these people knew he had a daughter, it raised more threats, it gave them more on him, and there was no way he was risking them knowing about Rebecca._

_"No."_

_Yinsen nodded. "So you're a man who has everything...and nothing."_

Tony blinked, bringing him back to the image he was staring at. Iron Man. That big hole in his chest, the glow of the arc reactor. He would never forgive himself for letting Yinsen die without knowing he had a family, that he had a reason to live, and she was right in front of him, sleeping soundly.

As Tony's mind wandered, he kept thinking about what this all meant now. The world knew about Iron Man, they knew about him, and there were so many implications to that. Not only on him, but on Rebecca, and on Pepper, and Rhodey, and Happy. Everyone's lives would change because of this.

Tony's hand was resting on the side of the bed, right next to Rebecca's arm, and he was startles when he felt fingertips grasping at it.

"Dad," she spoke weakly, the same voice she had when she woke up in the morning.

"Hey," Tony smiled widely, not even trying to hide his relief and happiness that she was awake. "How do you feel?" Tony knew he shouldn't bombard her with questions right now, but he needed to know.

"Tired." she closed her eyes, resting her head into the pillow more. "Sore." Tony frowned, he had spoken to the nurse about pain relief, but they assured him she wouldn't feel uncomfortable she woke up. "Why are all these tubes in me?" Rebecca peaked through her eyes, looking over to her father. "Are you okay? What happened? Where's Obadiah? Is Pepper okay?" It was almost as if she sprung to life with each question she asked, becoming more and more concerned.

Tony moved closer and grabbed her hand, pulling it close. "Hey, no. Stop, just stop. Take a minute, relax." he instructed, trying to stop her from having some sort of anxiety attack when she only just woke up. "Pepper's perfectly fine, you don't need to worry about all of that anymore, okay?" he answered, but he noticed she was aware he didn't answer her first question. "I'm fine."

Rebecca adjusted her position, trying to get comfortable but just wanting to sleep again. "What happened?"

Tony sighed. "You really want to talk about that? You just woke up."

"Yeah, and the last thing I remember was standing outside when Pepper went back in, so I'm a little confused." she justified.

"Pepper went back inside to switch on all the power overlays and the main switch to the roof. I needed all that power to...get rid of Obadiah." Tony explained. "Pepper ran outside and found you, but uh...I was...still on the roof, I got knocked out."

"What? So you're _not_ okay!" She sat up, inspecting her dad's bruises and cuts on his face. "You're not."

"I'm okay, this is nothing." Tony shrugged. "I was in a metal suit, I was fine. You, on the other hand, are not. So stop worrying, stop everything, just...rest."

Rebecca took a deep breath an closed her eyes. "I can't." she tried to calm her thoughts, but they were running wild. "I thought you were dead. Obadiah...he took the..." she pointed to his chest. "He told me you were...what if you did?"

Just watching her spiral into that worry made Tony's heart break. He stood up from his seat and lowered himself down to pull her close, but she grabbed him first and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tight. Tiny felt his shirt wet when he realized she was crying, and it was understandable. She had gone out thinking her dad was dead or dying, being killed by Obadiah, and woke up to all these questions she needed to be answered.

"It's okay, it's okay," Tony held her, trying to calm her. "Shh, it's okay. Look, we're both here. I'm here, I'm okay, I'm not leaving you remember? I promised."

Rebecca, just as she had all her life, seemed to calm down in her father's arms. Just the fact that he was still there and she knew he wasn't going anywhere, made her feel so much better. They stayed like that for a few minutes as her sobs died away, resting peacefully on her dad's shoulder.

"What's wrong me me?" she asked, sniffling. "Why do I feel...weird?"

Tony pulled back slightly to explain. "You lost a like of blood, and a concussion, and...this." he looked over to her leg. "It's broken and it's gonna take a while to heal. They're just getting your vitals up to a healthy level again, but I'll try and get you out as soon as possible. It's probably the pain relief, it's uh, a bit strong."

Rebecca nodded as she took in what was going on, but she wasn't a fan of hospitals, and she didn't like being here at all.

"Lucas." Rebecca spoke, remembering. "Did you...did you find him?"

Tony looked confused. "Lucas? What about him?"

Rebecca didn't want to tell him now, but she was already in too deep. "He was...he took me to that place, he was the one who kidnapped me. He was working with Obadiah."

Tony's face held obvious anger, an he took a moment to process what this meant. He didn't even want to think about the possibility of Lucas knowing about the suit, or knowing too much, he could only focus on the fact he was the one who took his daughter in the first place.

"I'm sorry," Tony ran his hand over his face. "I should've been there for you. I should've protected you."

Rebecca picked up his hand again. "No, dad, it was my choice. There was nothing you could've done, I put myself in that position because...well, I'm stubborn, I guess. Not to mention really, really dumb for doing that."

"You're not dumb, and this probably isn't the best advice but I would've done the same, because I'm just as stubborn." Tony slightly smiled. "But if you ever do that to me again, if you get scare me like that...then, I don't know, you're grounded." he laughed.

Rebecca grinned, leaning back into the pillow. "Well, that would be a first."

Tony laughed. "Yeah, I guess I never was one for the whole...authority thing. Lucky you were such a good kid though."

Rebecca winced as she moved around in her bed, trying to get comfortable without having to move her heavy, plastered leg. Tony watched on as the pain appeared on her face, he couldn't stand watching her hurt and not being able to fix it.

"Oh," a nurse opened the door, peaking her head in. "You're awake." she walked in, making her way around Tony and picking up Rebecca's clipboard at the end of the bed. "Let's see how you are honey."

* * *

_"Who are you?" The little girl asked, peeking out from behind her dad's desk, startling the woman with red hair._

_Pepper had no idea anyone was in the room as she pulled out files from the drawers, preparing for her day._

_"My name is Pepper, sweetie." she spoke softly and kindly, reassuring the child she was not to be feared. "What's your name?"_

_The little girl hesitated. "I'm not supposed to tell strangers my name."_

_Pepper nodded. "That's very smart of you."_

_"But," she bit her lip. "My name is Beccy."_

_Rebecca Stark. Pepper nodded, understanding now who she was which explained why she was here._

_"Well hello Beccy," Pepper smiled. "I work for your dad, he's my boss."_

_Rebecca let out a long "Oh," as she nodded her head slowly. "You work for daddy."_

_"That's right."_

_Tony appeared at the door then, a small packet of sweets in his hand from the vending machine across the hall._

_"Ms. Potts," he greeted. "See you've met my daughter."_

_"Indeed I have." Pepper adjusted the files in her hand, watching as Tony gave the sweets to his young daughter._

_Tony was still very protective of his daughter around people, and since Pepper had only just started working for him, he needed to know that she could handle him having a child. The way he seen it, if Rebecca didn't like his assistant, he wouldn't have one._

_"Her name is Pepper." Rebecca spoke as she popped a gummy bear in her mouth. "She has pretty hair."_

_Pepper's lips quirked into a smile as Tony looked over to her with a grin._

_"Yes she does." Tony agreed._

_"Not as pretty as yours though," Pepper knelt down to her level. "Are those pink bows? They're so pretty! I wish my hair was that pretty."_

_Rebecca's cheeks flushed red and she giggled at the compliment before she put her bag of sweets down and pulled one of her many little clips out and reached up to Pepper's hair. Carefully, she placed the clip in the spot she wanted and clapped._

_"D'ere you go!"_

_Pepper gasped. "Thank you!"_

_Tony couldn't help smile from the position he stood in, watching as Rebecca giggled with the woman adorably._

Pepper pushed the door open to Rebecca's room as soon as he seen the second nurse exit, and she knew she was awake now.

"Oh, Bec!" Pepper rushed over and knelt down to give her a kiss on her forehead. "How do you feel?"

Rebecca smiled at the sight of Pepper, and then laughed. "I feel...floaty...yeah..._floaty_."

Pepper raised an eyebrow. "You feel floaty? Sweetie, what do you mean? Are you okay?"

Rebecca laughed again. "Swee_tie_," she smiled. "Floa_ty_."

Pepper turned then and looked at Tony who was holding back a laugh of his own as he let Pepper's confusion drag on.

"Morphine." Tony let out after a while. "She's hopped up on it, for her leg."

"Oh." Pepper nodded. "But she's okay right?" she then asked worriedly.

Tony smiled. "She's okay."

* * *

**Oh man, I hope you guys liked that chapter. I wrote it a bit..weird. Anyway, there'll be more explained in next chapters, as usual, and I'll work on bringing the story to somewhat of an ending. I'm thinking I will be writing a sequel to this story in Iron Man 2 movie-verse which hopefully leads into The Avengers, finally. I've been thinking about just doing some one-shot stories on Tony and Rebecca's relationship as she grew up and how everything turned out the way it did and so on, since this story started 16 years into their relationship and there's a lot to explain and just explore with. It'd be great if you guys let me know if you'd be interested in that, because it's just a little idea at the moment. Please review, love hearing from you all and I really hope you enjoyed this update! **


	24. Chapter 24

***Note - I have left a little message at the end of this story to let you know about the sequel and one-shot series I'll be writing if you are interested in reading more Tony/Rebecca stuff!**

* * *

_"Your dad…when he left the demonstration, the vehicle he was traveling in was attacked…" Rhodey took another pause. "and he wasn't found. He's missing, and there's a chance…there's a chance he's been taken by the attackers."_

Rebecca squirmed in the bed, her eyes closing tightly and her head lolling to different sides.

_"You did not tell us the man you hired us to kill was the great Tony Stark."_

Rebecca thrashed her arm against the sides of her bed, violently moving about.

_"If only they did their job right and killed him when they were supposed to...''_

_"I don't think so Beccy. You see, right now, your dad's wasting away on the living room couch, that little arc reactor over there, I took it straight from his chest. I don't think he's got long, if he's made it this far at least, so don't expect your daddy to come and save you this time."_

Her breathing was heavy, and a frightened whimper made its way from her lips before it overwhelmed into a full scream as she jolted upright on the bed. It was all in her head, it was just a nightmare. Her room was empty, and it was dark. For a moment she thought she had slept through to the next day, but she soon realized the blinds were down and she had been asleep for only an hour. Her heart was still pounding as her mind failed to escape her fears, bringing them to her dreams instead. She couldn't handle losing her dad, not again, she wouldn't do it. It was no use convincing herself that it was all over now, because that brought her little to no comfort at all, the damage had been done.

* * *

Tony wandered out of Rebecca's room as she had fallen asleep, in search of the coffee machine. The nurses all looked at him as he walked by, not even bothering to be subtle about it.

"Mr. Stark." Tony turned to see Agent Coulson standing by the coffee machine as if he'd predicted to find Tony here. "We need to talk."

Tony nodded, pulling out a cup and making himself a hot coffee. "So talk."

"We've come up with a cover story for last night's events." he spoke proudly. "We have documents, hotel booking histories, receipts, everything to back you up."

"Great." Tony stirred the sugar into his drink. "I'll give it a look before I need to handle the press."

Agent Coulson gave him a sympathetic look. "That's just it, Mr. Stark, we've organized one in a few hours time."

Tony raised his eyebrows. "What? You guys don't waste time, do ya's?"

Coulson smiled. "We take these issues very seriously and highly. Whenever you're ready, we have a full briefing on the cover story ready as well as a written statement for you to give to the press."

Tony nodded along. "Look, I have to be with my daughter right now."

"We understand Mr. Stark, but this is a serious matter. I'm sure your daughter will understand, if not encourage this idea. The sooner it's done, the sooner it's behind you all."

* * *

"Hmm, _Iron Man_," Rebecca mused loudly as she read the cover of the newspaper for the first time. "At least he got a cool name."

Pepper shook her head as she adjusted Rebecca's pillows where she still lay in her hospital bed. Rebecca had insisted her dad leave her side to go deal with the Iron Man business, speaking with Agent Coulson and attending the press conference. He didn't want to leave her in the hospital, so Pepper had gotten him ready for the meeting and then stayed with Rebecca.

"Are you comfortable?" Pepper asked, moving the sheets around her leg.

"Pepper, you don't have to do all this, I'm fine." Rebecca held her arm out, stopping Pepper from being able to move anything else around her.

Pepper frowned. "I most certainly do young lady, because you are in need of rest."

Rebecca hated when Pepper called her 'young lady', it made her feel like she had done something wrong. Pepper continued to fidget with the bed sheets and pillows, instructing Rebecca to lay back down from her sitting position.

"I'm not an invalid." Rebecca grumbled.

"Right now you _are_, so stop arguing." Pepper put her hands on her hips. "At least that pain relief isn't making you...well, high, anymore."

Rebecca nodded, letting out a small laugh. "Well, I still can't feel a thing, but I'm not going on with crap so that's good."

Pepper took a seat next to the bed, turning on the television. They had planned to watch the press conference since neither of them could be there, but the worry and nerves that they each held was the same as if they were there. It hadn't started yet. Pepper was expecting a call from Tony soon to let them know about the situation, what Coulson had come up with and what was going to happen.

"Hey Pepper," Rebecca called softly. "Thank you, for getting me out of that building when I could barely stand. I...I don't think I'd be here I'd you hadn't. You risked your life for me, and I don't know how I can explain just how much that means to me."

Pepper reached her arm out and took Rebecca's hand in hers. "I'd do it again and again if it meant I could see you smiling every day. You were so strong, so brave, and I'm proud of you."

Rebecca's lip trembled as her emotions came to the surface. "I always want you in my life Pepper, no matter what happens."

Pepper knew what Rebecca was referring to. She wanted Pepper in her life no matter what happened between her and her father. She was a smart kid, she could easily put the pieces together of their complicated relationship, but she never became involved in it.

"I _promise._"

* * *

Tony had read the small palm cards that Agent Coulson had given him at least a dozen times now, plastering the new story in his mind. He had to keep convincing himself to believe the story, because compared to what did actually happen, this was too far from it. Coulson had organized alibis and background stories for him, something about being at a resort on an island, he didn't really read that one too much. There was even a cover story for Obadiah as well, his was a plane accident which was very plausible considering the amount of travel that he had done for the company. But now that Tony looked back on all his travels, he now knew it wasn't all for business trips rather than a plot to kill him.

"You okay?" Rhodey's voice came into the room. He was dressed in his formal military uniform, ready to address the press and explain his part of the events. "You look better than you did this morning."

Pepper had gotten Tony ready for the press conference, covering his bruises and complexions and combing his hair back, picking out a suit for him as well.

"You don't look too bad yourself, Colonel." Tony gave him a smile. "Have you heard my cover story?"

Rhodey rolled his eyes. "Yes I have Tony, and it's seems very plausible so quit going on about it."

"I just don't get The bit where that suit was my _body guard_." Tony shook his head, reading through the cards once again. "I can't believe these people are going to have to mourn Obadiah, there'll probably even be a ceremony, and they have_ no_ idea who he really was."

Rhodey hung his head, thinking about it. He himself was fooled by Obadiah, trusting him to such an extent and then being blindsided. "Look, I hate that idea as much as you, but if you wanna leave this mess behind, you gotta read the cards for what they say."

"I will." Tony groaned. "It just sucks, big time, that everyone here won't know what kind of murderer that man was and what he tried to do. They won't know what could've happened. They won't know what _did_ happen, or about Iron Man."

Rhodey already knew Tony wasn't on board with the whole fake story idea, but it was better than what might happen if the public knew about everything. Tony felt he owed the public because of what his company did, because everything that had gone wrong was all based around him.

"It'll all be over soon, just get this done, and then we can all put it behind us." Rhodey comforted.

"I can't put this behind me." Tony shook his head. "Not _this_. I can't."

* * *

Pepper was still fussing about over Rebecca once the nurse came back into the room, asking all sorts of questions about what medication Rebecca was on, 'how were her levels now?', 'should she be sleeping?', 'is she okay?', it was endless. However, nothing caused her to fuss more than when the nurse gave her a pair of crutches and a walking frame.

"She can't use those yet!" Pepper looked shocked that they would even think she was ready.

The nurse agreed. "They're only for walking to the bathroom, or if she feels the need to stand for a while. Being in the same position in that bed can be a bit uncomfortable."

"Yes it_ is_." Rebecca whined. "Thank you very much."

The nurse left the room and Rebecca began her struggle to get out of the bed. It was a bit hard when there were still a few drips in her arm and she couldn't move her leg any more than a few centimeters at a time.

"What are you doing? You heard the nurse, only when you need to get to the bathroom." Pepper frowned, worrying.

Rebecca rolled her eyes, Pepper's constant nagging was getting to her, but she knew she couldn't help worrying.

"Yes, or if I feel the need to stand." she pointed out. "I need to stand. I've been in this bed for too long, I just need a couple of minutes, my back hurts."

"Your back hurts?" Pepper narrowed her eyes with concern.

"No! No, just laying there for too long. Stop worrying about me." Rebecca waved off her concerns and swung her body off the bed, biting her lip at the aches she felt when she moved.

Pepper watched on after trying to help, but her phone began buzzing in her pocket. She looked at the caller I.D and answered. "Tony, is it starting now?"

Rebecca paused, looking up at the television that was preparing the broadcast the conference. She had achieved her standing position, but was leaning on the bed with most of her weight while the crutches remain by her sides in her hands. She couldn't help roll her eyes again when she heard Pepper filling him in on her condition. After everything that happened, she was alive and well, it was time to focus of fixing this mess now.

"Okay, good luck." Pepper sat her phone down on the corner table, scooting her chair over next to Rebecca as they prepared to watch the conference. "God, I hope everything goes alright. There's going to be so many questions."

Rebecca nodded, and she could feel she was nervous for her father. "Me too."

* * *

"You ready man?" Rhodey walked back into the room where Tony was, once again, reviewing the cards and pulling a face at the story set up for him.

"Sure." he sighed. "This is going to be..._painful_."

''Just read the cards, okay? It doesn't matter if they don't believe it.''

''You said it was plausible.'' Tony pointed out.

Rhodey rolled his eyes. ''Yes, but...I'm preparing you, they're not the nicest people, that's why they're with the press.''

Tony followed Rhodey out of the room and into the lobby, shielding him from the press' view, but he could already feel their looks and judgements. He stopped then, Rhodey going ahead and addressing the crowd of camera's and notepads.

"There's Rhodey." Pepper held her hands together, watching on to the television to listen closely to his words.

"We're here to discuss and hear statements of the extreme malfunctioning of powerful material at Stark Industries, which took place last night at 800 hours." Rhodey began. "I would like to stress that everything has been taken care of, and all is now under control. We face no threat of this malfunctioning at the present moment in time."

Rebecca was biting on her lip, a bad habit when nervous, as he watched the television, trying to put together the pieces of this new cover story. She hadn't heard any of it, so this was all just as new to her as it was for the public.

Not long after, and many questions later, it was time for Rhodey to step down and introduce Tony to speak, and he knew the camera's would really begin to flash then.

"It's my pleasure to hand you over to Mr. Tony Stark, of Stark Industries."

Tony tapped at the pocket inside his chest, making sure the palm cards were still there, and he skimmed his hand across his arc reactor, feeling a glimmer of hope from the device. As expected, the camera's flashed wildly at his entrance which was one of his more low-key entrances when compared to his others. He took a few steps up onto the stand before the microphone, and e couldn't help his mind taking him back.

_"Just stay right here okay? With Linda." Tony instructed Rebecca as he lead we over to the elderly lady who stood in the lobby, watching the conference take place. "Just like before."_

_"O...kay." Rebecca nodded sadly as the old lady took her hand._

_"Don't worry Mr. Stark, I'm great with kids." she laughed in a rough voice that made Rebecca cringe._

_"It's only for a little while." Tony promised her and bent down to give her a kiss on her forehead and heard his name being called for him to hurry._

_Tony rushed over to the men that were instructing him to make his way up to the stand. He took a step further, looking out at the crowd, before a hand rested on his shoulder._

_"You know what to do Tony." Obadiah smiled confidently, encouraging him to do the conference the way he had advised._

_"You got it." Tony winked._

_Tony stood up to the microphone, clearing his throat as he scanned the room for any faces that he might be familiar with, and he came across the innocent face staring back at him. Just seeing her out there, looking right back at him, he knew he could do just about anything, all for her._

That thought ran through Tony's mind as he pulled the palm cards from the pocket inside his coat. This was all for Rebecca, for her safety, to make sure he would never have to go through almost losing her again, or Rebecca losing him after he promised.

Tony began his speech, welcoming everyone, being polite and whatnot, the usual beginnings of a press conference. He could tell with each word he said that the journalists and reporters weren't getting the answers they came for, so he got straight to it.

"There's been speculation that I was involved in the events that occurred on the freeway and the rooftop..." Tony was weighing up words in his head when he was interrupted by someone he was becoming too familiar with.

"Ugh," Pepper groaned when she seen who was speaking. "Should've known she would have something to say."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Stark," Christine Everhart's annoyingly polite voice began. "but do you _honestly_ expect us to believe that that was a bodyguard in a suit that conveniently appeared, despite the fact that-"

"I know that it's confusing." Tony enjoyed the fact that he got to interrupt her this time. "It is one thing to question the official story, and another thing entirely to make wild accusations, or insinuate that I'm a superhero."

" I never said you were a superhero." Christine spoke matter-of-factly.

"No?"

"No." she shook her head.

"Well, good, because that would be outlandish and, uh, fantastic. I'm just not the hero type. Clearly. With this laundry list of character defects, all the mistakes I've made, largely public."

"What is he doing?" Rebecca shook her head, trying to comprehend what was being played out on the screen before her. "Is this part of the cover?" she asked, and Pepper shrugged in response.

Tony stopped when he noticed Rhodey's presence moving closer, leaning in next to his ear.

"Just stick to the cards, man." he advised before stepping back.

"Yeah, okay." he nodded, clearing his throat to continue his speech. "truth is..."

Rebecca and Pepper watched the screen intensely, shaking their heads in confusion.

"What's going on? What's wrong?" Rebecca worried at the long pause Tony was taking.

"Oh, god." Pepper bit her nails nervously.

Tony stared at the cards in front of him, somehow conflicted. This moment, this right now, was his chance to either begin his repayment to the world for what he had done, or continue with the obvious lies, living with his guilt and the knowledge of what was now his life. In those few seconds of silence, his decision was made.

"I _am_ Iron Man."

* * *

_***cue Black Sabbath's 'Iron Man'***_

**Okay guys, I'm not sure if I like the ending myself here, but I really wanted to stick to the movie-verse ending since I liked it so much. I hope you all enjoyed this story and I really, really appreciate all of the wonderful reviews I've received! I have decided I will definitely be writing a sequel in movie-verse Iron Man 2, but throwing my own stuff in there so expect surprises. I'm not sure when I'll start that, but it will be posted in another story as I want to keep them separate. Also, I'm going to be writing little one-shots in a series, just playing around with different stages of Tony and Rebecca's relationship, filling in what happened in those sixteen years. So if you guys want to check that out and read different little events in their life as Rebecca grows up, keep a look out! Again, thank you guys so much for reading this story and giving me a lot of support through your wonderful reviews! If you'd like to add me to Author Alerts, you will be able to see when I start posting the one-shots series and the sequel or anything else! For the one-shots, you will all be able to request whatever stages in their lives you'd like to see, so stay tuned and keep a look out for me! Thank you all!**


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